Saetwo's Story
by that one little guy
Summary: A novelization of Logical Journey of the Zoombinis. Witness as Saetwo and her friends escape from the tyrannical Bloats and embark on an incredible and semieducational quest in search of a new home! I command you!
1. Unexpected Guests

_Not too long ago, Zoombinis_ _enjoyed the good life. Though they all looked slightly different – different eyes, noses, hair, feet – such differences meant nothing to the Zoombinis_. _And so they lived happily on Zoombini Isle, making small, useful products which were prized the world over. The Zoombinis had a sense of fulfillment and inner peace – not to mention healthy bank accounts._

_Then one day, who should show up but the Bloats. . . ._

_-----_

"Echae, come up here! Look at this!"

It was a balmy, breezy evening on the island, the setting sun turning the sky to a vibrant array of reds and oranges. The ocean lazily lapped the shore as the trees rustled lightly in the wind. Things were even more peaceful than usual on the mainland, for at that moment nearly all of the island's inhabitants were crowded at the shore. Some of them had been on board one of the ships, moving crates around and preparing them for departure. They had been the first ones to see it, and as they did, they began calling urgently out to their fellows, who had been quick to join them.

A ship was pulling into the harbor.

This had never happened before. They had always sailed out to deliver their products; never before had any clients come to retrieve them. The island, though certainly large enough, was in the middle of the ocean, days away from any other land, and not easy to locate.

The ship that was pulling in was massive; at least three times the size of any of their own. Its huge white sails billowed in the breeze, and beneath its figurehead, which closely resembled the head of a vicious dragon, there was a large round insignia bearing nothing but a letter B.

This was all being seen from far away by one of the island's younger inhabitants. From the top of the hill she had just crested, she had a perfect view of the harbor some hundreds of feet away and below.

"Echae! Come _on!_" She managed to tear her gaze away from the ship long enough to hiss over her shoulder. "You'll miss it!"

Like everyone else on the island, the main portion of her body was nothing more than a light blue lump and she possessed no hands, arms, or visible mouth, but nonetheless, there was no one who looked exactly like her. For one, she was hovering atop the hill – hovering, not standing, for instead of feet, she had an ever-spinning propeller she used to fly everywhere. Her dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and a brown pair of glasses rested over her bright blue nose.

"Echae, you are _impossible_," she chastised as her slower companion came struggling up the hill.

"Cut me a little slack, Sae!" he gasped in exhaustion as he collapsed to the ground in front of her. "Having to rollerskate everywhere isn't as fun as it sounds! Especially when it's up a _hill!_"

"Well, now that you're up here, come have a look!" encouraged the flyer, whose full name happened to be Saetwo. "There's a ship coming in the harbor! And it's not one of ours!"

"What? What are you talking about?" Echae hastily shook his unkempt mop of hair out of his face and leapt to his feet – or rather, wheels – and looked out at the harbor. His big bright eyes grew even wider as he gazed at it in disbelief.

"What in the world is _that?_" he cried. "I don't recognize it from anywhere! Are these guys customers?"

"Who knows? All I know is I want to get a better look!"

Without even waiting for her friend, Saetwo zipped down the hill in the direction of the harbor, always hovering a few inches above the ground.

"Sae, _wait!_" Echae shouted, struggling to balance on his skates as he took off after her. Unfortunately, he wasn't especially adept at skating down steep slopes, and within moments he had tripped and was tumbling head over heels down the hill.

"AAAAAHHHH!" he cried as he fell, faster and faster, the world spinning around him – and then, with a jarring impact, he stopped dead.

"OUCH!" came a loud protest, followed by the sound of someone hitting the ground several feet away. Echae, groaning loudly, struggled to lift his head back up to see just whom he had struck.

"Oh, great," he muttered. "Just who I wanted to see."

"Watch where you're going, loser!" snapped the other, storming back up the hill to give Echae a violent shove. "We're in the middle of something!"

"If by 'something' you mean 'bullying someone smaller and weaker than yourselves'," Saetwo retorted as she flew over to the two of them. "Leave him alone, Xekrai."

"Ooh. The loser_ette _is threatening me. I'm so scared," Xekrai taunted as the small group of cronies gathered behind him began to laugh. Xekrai was sporting an immaculate flattop haircut, sunglasses, and a bright red nose. He had always been an commanding presence among the island's younger demographic, and none of his lackeys ever seemed to care that he wore pink shoes.

"Oh shut up, Xekrai. We're not losers," Echae snapped, but then cast an uneasy sideways glance at Saetwo. "Are we?"

"Pfft. No. That's just Xekrai's term for anyone who doesn't go around licking his girly pink shoes."

Xekrai looked ready to throw an acerbic comeback at Saetwo when his cohorts abruptly burst out laughing. He turned around in confusion to see that they had formed a circle and had begun to divert themselves by shoving someone in the middle back and forth amongst each other, shouting taunts at him the whole time.

"Except for Uloobu," Saetwo sighed. "He really _is _a loser."

"Guys, leave me alone!" Uloobu whined as he was pushed around by the circle of bullies. "Please stop it!"

"_That's _what you were in the middle of?" Echae demanded. "Xekrai, we might respect you a little more if you started picking on someone who could actually defend themself."

"I'll handle this," said Saetwo, flying into the circle and gently nudging Uloobu out. Everyone in the circle began protesting loudly and flinging insults at her as she did.

"Come on, guys, can't you leave this guy alone for just one day?" she shot back. "Xekrai, you ought to know better. You can't just go around messing around with people for no reason."

"I can do whatever I want. In case you've forgotten, my dad is – "

"_Mayor of Zoombini Isle,_" Saetwo and Echae chanted along with him.

"Yeah, trust us, Xekrai, we remember," Echae said irritably. "You only tell us about once every five seconds."

"And it still doesn't give you the right to make life so hard for people," Saetwo added. "If you're all looking for something to do, there's a weird ship pulling into the harbor right now. We were just going to go check it out ourselves."

"Really?" asked one of Xekrai's friends.

"Yeah right, Saetwo," Xekrai scoffed. "Like we'd fall for that. Right, guys? . . .Guys?"

Xekrai turned around to see that everyone else was already scrambling down the hill, shouting excitedly at the sight of the enormous ship that was pulling into view.

"Guys! Wait for me!" Xekrai shouted as he dashed after them, leaving the other three alone.

"Well, the next time we see him will be too soon," Echae remarked.

"You okay, Uloobu?" asked Saetwo, giving him a somewhat friendly nudge.

"I think," was all he would say.

Uloobu was, shall we say, not the most becoming of his species. He had a propeller just like Saetwo's, but he was bald save for three tiny hairs on his head, possessed one solitary eye in the middle of his face, and had a sickly purple nose.

"Thanks for helping me," he muttered. "You guys are Echae and. . . Saetwo, right?"

"Yep," Echae replied smugly, puffing out his chest. "I'm sure you've heard of us."

"Mostly from Xekrai. He says you're both dorks."

"Oh." The smug look wilted from Echae's face. Saetwo couldn't help but giggle at his reaction.

"But I see you two a lot," Uloobu went on. "You're always together. You two must be best friends."

"The very best," Echae agreed.

"I sure wish I had a best friend," Uloobu sighed, lowering his eyes dejectedly to the ground. "I wish I had _any _friend. But there's no chance of that ever happening."

"That sounds like something Xekrai would tell you to get you down," said Saetwo, trying to hide her growing impatience at Uloobu and his total lack of self-esteem. "_That's _why he's always picking on you. Because you believe him."

"Yeah, that's definitely Xekrai for you," said Echae, but Uloobu didn't look happy with that explanation.

"It's the one eye, isn't it? Nobody likes the one eye!"

"Don't be silly," said Saetwo. "He's got nothing against people with one eye. Check out his sister."

"_And _his dad," Echae cut in.

"I guess it's just me then," Uloobu groaned, and began slowly flying away. "I'm going home where he can't find me."

"Hey, wait, Uloobu!" Echae called after him. "Don't you want to go see the big ship?"

"No thanks," Uloobu muttered. "I'm sure Xekrai'll tell me all about it the next time he's beating me up." And with that he disappeared over the hill. Saetwo and Echae hovered and stood, respectively, watching sadly after him for a moment before continuing down toward the harbor.

"That Xekrai really is a jerk," said Saetwo. "Like Uloobu doesn't already have enough on his plate. The poor guy can't even fly very well."

"I know what you mean. He never did anything to Xekrai."

"Except be an easy target, I guess."

They continued chatting idly until they reached the harbor about ten minutes later. Both of them were disappointed to find that it was already crowded with hundreds of people – nearly the entire population of the island – and it was nearly impossible to see the ship that had by now docked. Saetwo tried flying above the heads of the others and looking down, but that hardly worked, as the air was already filled with others with propellers.

"Can you see anything, Sae?" Echae called up, barely audible over the sound of everyone else talking excitedly amongst themselves.

"Not really. . . . " Saetwo strained to look through the crowd of other flying Zoombinis. "Xekrai's dad is over there, though. He's talking to – WOAH!"

Standing on the dock in front of the strange ship was the mayor, Iadwi. Xekrai had inherited his red nose and his flattop from Iadwi, but that was all they had in common; the mayor was as cycloptic as Uloobu and, in place of legs, had a coiled spring meant for bouncing from place to place. But Saetwo hardly noticed him; her attention was focused on the three creatures he was talking to.

They were three or four times the size of any Zoombini. Also, their anatomy was complete – they had arms and hands as well as legs and feet. All three had a rather messy head of hair that closely resembled that of Echae; their skin was a peculiar yellow-green; each had a snaggletooth sticking out from their protruding snouts; and they wore nothing except for large cloths around their waists. The one standing in the middle, whom Saetwo took to be their leader, was brandishing a spear so that no one else could approach them.

"What? 'Woah' what?" Echae shouted, jumping up and down in a desperate attempt to see what was going on.

"Uh. . . there are some weird-looking guys over here," Saetwo called back down.

"Mayor Iadwi, who _are _these people?" came a voice from somewhere in the crowd.

"Yeah, you've been talking to them long enough!" came a second. "We want to know what's going on!"

Within moments, the entire crowd was repeating the sentiments of the first two in very loud, impatient voices, so that finally Iadwi could no longer ignore them. Saying something quickly to his guests, he turned to face the crowd looking very irritated.

"All right everyone, SHUT UP!" he shouted.

The crowd obediently fell silent.

"These fellows here say they're called Bloats," Iadwi explained to the others. "They also say they've come a long way looking for us. They have a business proposition they want everyone to hear."

The crowd erupted into low muttering at that. Saetwo took the opportunity to drop back down to the ground and whisper to Echae, "Have you ever heard of _Bloats _before?"

"Uh-uh," he whispered back. "I don't think we've ever delivered anything to them before. I wonder where they come from?"

"So I told them we would love to hear their proposition," Iadwi continued, "and we would hold a meeting in the Town Hall to discuss it."

No one responded.

"That's _now, _people."

"_Ohhhhhh_," said the others, and quickly began filing out of the harbor and toward the mainland.

"Oh boy! I wonder what their idea is!" Saetwo exclaimed, twirling around in midair. "This'll be exciting! Come on, Echae, hurry up! I don't want to miss it!"

But Echae stayed where he was. "Uh, Sae. . . I get the feeling that this meeting is for the adults only."

"What? That's crazy!"

"Actually, I'm afraid he's right, miss."

Saetwo jolted at the voice behind her. She spun around and saw that Iadwi was standing next to her, accompanied by the three Bloats.

"What do you mean he's right?" she demanded. "What if _I _have something to say about this?"

"Well, I'm sorry, but once the Bloats have argued their case, we're going to vote on it. Only Zoombinis of legal voting age are allowed," Iadwi explained. "Maybe when you're older."

"Don't worry, little girl. I'm sure the grownups will make the right decision," said the Bloat holding the spear.

Saetwo realized that this was the first time she had heard one of them speak. She didn't like his voice at all. Besides being deep and rather unintelligent-sounding, it also seemed very harsh – almost sinister, even. She got a chill just hearing it.

Iadwi didn't seem to notice, however, as he quickly bounced off along with the three foreigners, leaving Saetwo and Echae alone on the dock.

"Is there something you didn't like about those guys?" Saetwo asked in a low voice.

"Yeah. Their smell," said Echae, wrinkling his orange nose in disgust.

"Besides that! I think they're plotting something. I don't think we should be in any sort of arrangement with them."

"Oh, Sae, quit being paranoid."

"I'm serious! Those guys are trouble, Echae! Think about it – why else would they come all the way here instead of waiting for us to come to them? I think they must want Zoombini Isle!"

"_I_ think you're getting crazy," Echae said sternly. "Look, even if you're right, you don't have any proof they're doing anything wrong! You can't just fly up there and tell them off because you have a _gut feeling_."

Saetwo looked at Echae for a moment, then slowly lowered her head in defeat. "Yeah, you're right," she muttered.

"Of course I'm right. Besides, if they _were _hiding something from us, it would have to be on the ship, and of course -- "

Saetwo looked up thoughtfully. "On the ship, huh?"

"Yeah, but of course we can't do something crazy like get on the ship and search it for information. . . right? Sae?"

But as Echae saw the mischievous sparkle in Saetwo's eyes, he realized how wrong he was.


	2. The Discovery

"We are in _so much trouble,_" Echae moaned.

He and Saetwo were on board the Bloats' enormous ship. Saetwo was whizzing around and searching around every crate and barrel she could find, and Echae was slowly and reluctantly doing likewise.

"Would you stop being such a pansy, Echae?" Saetwo admonished as she flew past him. "If the Bloats really are up to something and we find out, we won't get in trouble! We'll be heroes!"

"But what are we even _looking _for?"

"Anything suspicious!"

"Well, I don't see _anything _suspicious. Just a bunch of supplies. Unless you can find something incriminating about a barrel full of fish. . . ."

"Well, I'm not convinced."

"Sae, you must have searched the entire ship three times now! The only place we haven't been yet is the captain's quarters, and the door's locked. Face it, there's _nothing here_. Now can we please get off before someone sees us?"

Saetwo simply hovered where she was for a moment before letting out a sigh and slowly descending to the ground.

"I was so sure. . . ."

"Well, everyone's wrong once in a while. Even you."

"It's just that those Bloats seemed so – "

Saetwo was cut off by a sound coming from the other end of the ship. She and Echae whipped around simultaneously and stared. The sound was coming from inside the captain's quarters, and it was the unmistakable sound of a doorknob being turned.

"There's someone else here!" Saetwo whispered. "Maybe they can – "

"_Hide, _you idiot!" Echae hissed, slamming into her and sending them both careening behind one of the barrels. They landed with Echae sprawled on top of Saetwo, who violently shoved him off.

"What was _that _for?" she demanded in as loud a whisper as she could manage.

"We're not supposed to be here, remember? You're going to get us caught!"

At that instant, the door opened. Saetwo and Echae ever so cautiously peered out from behind the barrel in time to see two figures walk on deck. Even in the failing evening light, it was obvious they were both Bloats.

"You sure they'll be fine without us?" one of them asked.

"Of course they will. We're not supposed to get off this boat, remember?" the other replied. "Somebody's gotta watch it in case things go wrong."

"Ain't that pretty likely? There's _hundreds _of them."

"Yeah, well, did you notice? They're tiny. They ain't even got arms. And if they try anything funny, it doesn't matter. The whole fleet's on its way."

The two hiding interlopers glanced at each other but remained silent.

"So what's so great about these guys, anyway? How'd Romelau find out about 'em?"

"Beats me. He just says that this place has the best mineral deposits for thousands of miles around. Plus it's got coal, oil, iron. . . you could make whatever you want here."

"But was it really worth comin' all the way here?"

"It must be. Romelau knows what he's talkin' about."

"Who's Romelau?" Echae whispered.

"He must be their leader. The guy with the spear," Saetwo whispered back.

The one Bloat who kept asking questions started gazing out at the island. "So we're all gonna live here now, huh?"

"You bet."

"Those blue guys ain't gonna like that."

The other Bloat gave a snort. "So what? We can deal with 'em. With force if we have to. And once we've gotten 'em in line, we'll get all the free labor we need out of 'em!" He laughed. "Ain't that funny – we'll be workin' 'em to death on their own island!"

He started laughing again, as though he found the idea incredibly amusing. The other Bloat quickly began laughing along with him. Saetwo and Echae were frozen in horror.

Once the sinister laughter died down, the less astute of the two Bloats remarked, "Gee, now I can't even remember what we came out here for."

In response, the smarter one suddenly reached out and pointed directly at the barrel that Saetwo and Echae were hiding behind.

"We were gonna go get some fish outta that barrel over there, remember? I'm starved."

"Uh oh," said Saetwo, forgetting to be quiet.

The smart Bloat gave a start. "What's that? Who's on this boat?" he demanded. Before Saetwo or Echae could react, he stormed over to the fish barrel and shoved it aside, exposing the two Zoombinis.

"What the – "

"RUN!" Echae screamed. "I mean, FLY! . . . SKATE! WHATEVER!"

The Bloat recovered from his shock quickly enough to lunge at the two of them, arms outstretched, but they were quicker. Saetwo zoomed over his shoulder while Echae swerved around him, and together they scrambled toward the other side of the ship, which faced the dock. By now both Bloats were tearing across the deck after them.

"_Come back here, you little runts!_" the smart one bellowed.

As they reached the edge of the ship, Saetwo flipped Echae over the side and onto the dock below before flying after him.

"That should buy us some time," Echae panted. "It'll take them a while to – "

He was immediately cut off as the smart Bloat placed his hands on the railing and launched himself clear over the side, landing just a few yards away from Saetwo and Echae with a force that shook the entire dock.

"NEVER MIND!" Echae screamed, and the two of them spun around and bolted down the dock toward the mainland as fast as they could go. Momentarily, another loud thud behind them told them that the second Bloat had just landed.

"_See? I was right all along!_" Saetwo shouted as they raced madly toward the shore. "Didn't I tell you they were up to something? Didn't I say?"

"Sae, can we talk about this some other time?" Echae shouted back.

"YOU CAN'T GET AWAY FROM US!" the smart Bloat roared from behind them as he and his partner came charging down the dock after them. As she and Echae reached land, Saetwo glanced over her shoulder long enough to see that their pursuers were rapidly gaining on them. She realized that it was only her and Echae's advantage of having a propeller and wheels that had kept them from being instantly apprehended.

"We have to get to the Town Hall!" Echae yelled. "We have to warn everybody before it's too late!"

"We'll never make it! They're going to catch us!"

"Let's split up!"

Saetwo briskly nodded. By now the Bloats were on top of them, and just as one of them reached out to snatch them up, they each dived off in a different direction, disappearing into the trees that surrounded the main path.

"You take the flying one! I'll go after the other one!" Saetwo heard the smart Bloat order his fellow, and almost instantly the sound of lumbering but determined footsteps came up a few yards behind her. By now night had practically fallen and their was almost no light in the sky, making it nearly impossible for Saetwo to see where she was going. Time and time again she crashed into an overhanging tree branch, throwing her glasses askew and sending her reeling, but still she flew on, desperate to make it in time, remembering that the fate of Zoombini Isle rested on her.

Suddenly an enormous tree branch, nearly a foot thick, came looming into view directly in front of her. She was flying straight at it. Letting out a startled yelp, she gave a jerk upward and flew over the top of the branch before hurrying on.

_If I almost hit that thing, _she thought, _then I wonder – _

From somewhere behind her came a deafening crash, a howl of pain, and a thud that suggested a large body had just hit the ground and was not likely to get up for a while.

Saetwo sighed in relief and kept flying.

Finally she burst through the trees and out into the open. She had reached the town square, and just on the other side of it was the Town Hall. To her relief, there were still some Zoombinis filing inside, meaning the meeting hadn't started yet. She put on an extra burst of speed as she flew toward them. She wasn't too late. She could still warn them –

"Saetwo? Where are you going?"

Saetwo jerked to a stop.

"_Mom?_" she cried, for the Zoombini who had just addressed her, one of the ones who had yet to go inside, was her mother, Flouquo.

"Saetwo, what's the matter? You looked scared out of your mind – who are you flying away from?"

Flouquo had short hair that was topped off with a small green baseball cap, and her eyes were perpetually droopy. Naturally she had a blue nose, since Zoombinis tended to inherit nose color from their parents, and like Xekrai, she wore shoes.

"Mom, we have to stop the meeting! The Bloats are here to take over the island! They're chasing after me right now!"

"What? What are you – "

"Mom, _please! _I don't have time! I have to get in there!" Saetwo attempted to fly off, but Flouquo stepped in front of her.

"Saetwo, calm down and tell me what's going on!"

"I _can't _– Mom, I told you, it's the Bloats! They're lying to us! They want to take over the entire island and I'm flying away from _them _because they're _chasing after me!_"

"Saetwo, that's nonsense!"

"Actually, ma'am, it ain't," came a chillingly familiar voice. Saetwo's heart froze in panic, and she and her mother spun around in the direction of the voice. Out of the darkness stepped the smart Bloat, and with him, being held up by his hair and whimpering in fright, was Echae.


	3. The Bloats Take Control

"I can't _believe _I'm not in there," Xekrai muttered. He was standing outside the Town Hall, peering in through one of the windows at the large group of Zoombinis seating themselves. Iadwi was standing in the front of the room behind a podium, and standing with him were the three Bloats.

Xekrai turned away from the window in disgust. "My dad's the _mayor!_ Doesn't that mean anything to _anyone _in this town?"

"Well, boss, they did say that no kids are allowed," said one of the two Zoombinis standing next to him.

"'Kids' means twelve and under, you dolt. I'm _thirteen_."

"But you can't vote yet," said the other one.

"So? That doesn't mean I can't go _in _there, right?"

Xekrai was accompanied by two of his most loyal subordinates, Iake and Weiswyo. The former had messy hair, droopy eyelids, a purple nose, and a spring. The latter had three small hairs, glasses, and a green nose, along with perhaps the most unusual means of transportation of all: two small motorized wheels, one in back of the other, connected by a bar and with a little exhaust pipe sticking out of the back.

"I'm telling you guys," said Xekrai, "one day everybody is going to recognize that I'm _important. _Nobody's ever going to take me for granted again! I don't care what it takes, I'm gonna _prove _I belong in there!" He turned to face the other two. "And you guys had better remember it!"

"We will, boss," said Weiswyo.

"And quit calling me 'boss'! You guys sound like idiots."

"Sorry, boss."

Xekrai rolled his eyes from behind his sunglasses and turned back to the window. Iadwi had begun to speak through the microphone on the podium, and Xekrai could just make out what he was saying.

"Attention, everyone, attention." He waited as everyone stopped talking. "You all know why I called this meeting. We have the pleasure of welcoming these three guests to Zoombini Isle. They say they have a commercial proposition for us that will be mutually beneficial, and I have agreed to let them discuss it with us."

Xekrai watched as Iadwi bounced down from the podium and the one Bloat holding the spear stepped up. He certainly was big. And Xekrai didn't like the way he always carried around that big spear. Maybe he was just being stupid, but that Bloat was making him ill at ease.

"Thank you for having us," said the Bloat. "We've heard all about you guys and how you send your stuff all over the world, but unfortunately you haven't been to our country yet."

"That's true," Iadwi agreed. "If I may ask, where _is _your country?"

"That ain't important. But it does mean that you guys haven't been as many places as you think you have. We Bloats are always travellin' around the ocean, and we know a lot of places you probably ain't even heard of."

Every Zoombini in the room started muttering.

"What's your point?" asked Iadwi.

"My point? My point is that we can help you, little blue guys. We can direct you to all sorts of places you've never been before. There'll be tons of people who'd love to buy all your stuff. Us included. Imagine how much more money you'd make with all those new customers!"

The volume of muttering increased.

"That is a very generous offer," said Iadwi, "but what's in it for _you?_"

"We just ask for a little percent of your profits. And trust me, you're gonna have money to spare, you lucky guys. We'll see to it."

"Where exactly are these other countries?" asked someone in the crowd.

"Far away from here. Probably farther than you've ever gone. But we got maps, and we'll show you how to get to any country in the world if you all agree to our little proposition."

"And you can assure us that this arrangement will be worth our while?" said Iadwi.

"You better believe it," said the big Bloat. "This might be the best thing to ever happen to you guys."

"Don't trust him, Dad," Xekrai whispered from where he stood watching.

"What'd you say, boss?" asked Iake.

Xekrai snapped back to reality. He had completely forgotten that the other two were even there. "Nothing," he said quickly. "I just don't know if I like these guys. They seem kind of. . . dangerous."

Suddenly he heard Iadwi's voice coming from inside and quickly turned away from Iake to look back at the scene before him.

"Well, this plan of yours sounds great," Iadwi was saying to the Bloat, "and it looks to me like we're ready to vote." He turned to the other Zoombinis. "All in favor of accepting help from the Bloats, say 'aye'."

"AYE!" shouted nearly every Zoombini in the room.

"That settles it!" Iadwi said cheerfully.

"You won't regret this," the Bloat assured them. He sounded amicable enough, but Xekrai saw a distinct glimmer of malice in his eye.

He groaned and turned away from the window for the last time. "This is awful," he lamented. "Who knows what those Bloats are going to do to us now?"

"Are you really that worried, boss?" Iake inquired concernedly.

"Of _course _I'm worried! But it's not like any of those know-it-alls in there care what _I _think," Xekrai replied bitterly. "Come on, guys, let's get out of here. I don't want to stick around here any longer than we have to."

He stormed away from the Town Hall, and Weiswyo and Iake respectively began rolling and bouncing after him. Suddenly, something in the middle of the town square caught Weiswyo's eye. He jerked to a stop and squinted to see what it was through the dark. There seemed to be voices coming from that direction as well.

"Hey, boss, isn't that Echae and Saetwo over there?"

"_Those _guys again?" Xekrai cried, spinning around to face Weiswyo. "I am so _sick _of them! What are they doing over here?"

"Well, from the looks of it," said Weiswyo, "they're being attacked by a Bloat."

-----

"Let _go _of him!" Saetwo snapped, trying to sound braver than she felt.

The Bloat did nothing but laugh scornfully at her. "And what if I _don't? _What are you gonna do to me, little girlie?"

"Sae, get out of here!" Echae cried.

"He's right, Saetwo!" said Flouquo. "You have to get to the Town Hall and warn everyone! I'll hold him off!"

"But Mom, you don't know what he – "

"_Just go!_"

Her eyes filling with frustrated tears, Saetwo turned around and hurtled toward the Town Hall. She couldn't remember ever flying so fast. From behind her she could hear a violent altercation going on between her mother and the Bloat, followed by several loud smacks that implied one of them was dealing the other some savage blows – and then, to her horror, footsteps. The Bloat was chasing after her.

But the Town Hall was only fifty feet away. Thirty. . . twenty. . . ten. . . .

"_Saetwo!_" Flouquo cried out in warning, but it was too late. The Bloat had his hands on her –

– and both of them crashed through the doors into the Town Hall.

The room erupted into noise.

"What's going on?"

"Where did that other Bloat come from?"

"What's he _doing _to her?" came one mortified voice, for the Bloat currently had his hands wrapped around Saetwo and was trying to strangle her.

"Get off of her!" shouted one Zoombini, and in a flash there were at least a dozen of them piled on top of the Bloat, desperately trying to pry his hands away.

Saetwo was panicking. Instead of letting go, the Bloat was only choking her harder than ever. _I can't breathe! _she screamed in her mind. _He's not letting go, they're not going to save me in time – _

Finally, a Zoombini with wheels landed on the Bloat's back with as much force as he could manage. The Bloat roared in pain and collapsed to the ground, and his hands came free.

"_The Bloats are lying!_" Saetwo screamed the instant she was released, even as she ravenously gasped for breath. "They want to take over the whole island and make us work for them! They want to make us slaves until we die!"

A collective gasp rose up in the room. After seeing what the Bloat had almost done to her, no one even thought of disbelieving her.

"Well, well, well," came a voice from the front of the room. Saetwo turned and looked. It was the Bloat with the spear – Romelau, she remembered.

Iadwi turned to face Romelau. "Is this _true?_" he demanded. "Is she telling the truth?"

"Unfortunately, she is," Romelau said coldly. "And I'm afraid this means the hostile takeover portion of our plan is going to be moved to right now."

And he stabbed Iadwi with his spear.

Saetwo shrieked. So did most of the others.

The Town Hall instantly erupted into chaos. The hundreds of panicked Zoombinis surged toward the doors, trying desperately to escape. But the smart Bloat had been right when he had predicted that even their great number would be powerless. Romelau and the two Bloats standing by him had suddenly produced nets, and they hurled them out into the crowd, enveloping dozens of Zoombinis at a time and jerking them backwards toward the podium. When they realized they were captured, they panicked even more, thrashing and screaming and tearing at the ropes that surrounded them, but it was no use.

Saetwo, having been nearest the doors, managed to escape the Town Hall, as did more than half of the others. But the Bloats burst out after them, still brandishing nets and still flinging them out and capturing the hapless Zoombinis.

"_Split up! Split up so they can't catch you!_" Saetwo yelled, but no one heard her over the tumult of the crowd. The Zoombinis had turned into a mindless mob, unable to think rationally, only able to run around in panic until they were scooped up by the nets.

"_Sae! Sae, help me!_" came a desperate wail. Saetwo froze; it was Echae.

"Echae! Echae, where are you?" she cried, whipping around but unable to see anything except hundreds of terrified Zoombinis fleeing around her in all directions.

"I'm over here!" Echae called out, this time from behind her. Saetwo turned and saw him – he was trapped inside one of the nets, and next to him was Flouquo.

"_Mom! Echae!_" she screamed and made to fly toward them, when someone stepped in front of her. It was the Bloat who had just tried to strangle her.

"You're next, little girl!" he snarled, flinging an empty net at her. But she was too quick for him; she dived off to the upper right as he threw the net so that he missed her entirely. Then, without looking back, she flew off toward the trees, back the way she had come.

_I have to get out of here! I don't care where, I don't care how, I just have to get out! If only I can hide long enough, maybe I can come back and rescue the others! Maybe I can – _

She burst through the trees and found herself facing the harbor once again. . . and her heart sank.

The horizon was lined with ships. Ships identical to the one the Bloats had come in. Even from her distance, Saetwo could see four or five towering green figures standing in each one. Some were holding spears, some were waving torches, but they were all bellowing in excitement as their boats rapidly approached the shore.

She just then remembered what the smart Bloat had said to the other while they were on board their ship: "_If they try anything funny, it doesn't matter. The whole fleet's on its way._"

Slowly, hopelessly, dejectedly, Saetwo sank to the ground. She was so sad that she barely felt herself being grabbed and tied up. They had lost. Zoombini Isle was doomed.


	4. An Intercepted Plan

**Three Months Later**

**-----**

Once again, the sun was setting over the island, but this time it was hidden behind a thick cloud of smog. Seeing the sky at all had become a rare event; for months now the island had been shrouded in almost perpetual darkness.

Saetwo was hovering on top of the hill once more, gazing morosely out at her home. Since the Bloats had taken over everything, it was hardly even recognizable anymore. The most glaring difference was a huge stone fortress that had been erected on a cliff near the shore, intended for the Bloats to use to watch over the harbor. But even the harbor had fallen into disarray; only the Bloats were allowed to use it, and they obviously did not know how to take care of it.

Worst of all, though, was the island itself. Under their new "management", the Zoombinis were producing at almost three times the rate they had been before, but the cost was terrible. The island's natural resources had rapidly been depleted, and the newly built factories spewed toxic waste into the air. Any trees that hadn't been chopped down had withered and died in the inhospitable atmosphere. The water was murky and polluted, the grass was brown and sickly, and, of course, the sky was perpetually dark.

"I remember when you used to be able to watch the sun set from up here," Saetwo sighed. "I would come up here every day I got the chance."

"Saetwo, as much as I would like to stand here and listen to your life story," Xekrai snapped at her, "we have a quota to fill, so I suggest you move it."

Snapped out of her reverie, Saetwo winced in misery and began pushing her wheelbarrow full of coal down the hill. Xekrai and about a dozen others followed after her. Everyone was either pushing their own wheelbarrow or carrying mining tools over their shoulders. Everyone except Xekrai, that is.

"Hey, boss," Iake panted and wheezed from behind Xekrai, straining under the weight of two pickaxes and two shovels, "are you sure you can't carry your own stuff?"

"Positive. Now shut up and stop slacking."

"Xekrai! I don't believe you!" Saetwo exclaimed. "You're such a jerk! Are you ever nice to _anyone?_"

Xekrai spun around. "Did I _ask _for your opinion?" her hissed at her with such venom that it actually frightened her. "Just keep it to yourself, okay?"

As he stormed off down the hill with the others dutifully following him, Saetwo watched after him and lowered her head in guilt. If Xekrai had disliked her before, he hated her now – but he had a reason.

They had found Iadwi inside the Town Hall the morning after the Bloats had taken over, nearly bled dry. The sight had been horrifying, but almost more frightening was how Xekrai had reacted. Saetwo had never in her life seen him so devastated, so heartbroken; she wouldn't have thought he was capable of feeling such emotion. He had thrown himself over his father and pleaded with him to live, but there was nothing anyone could do. Iadwi died a few hours later.

As soon as Xekrai had felt able to speak again, the first person he had spoken to was Saetwo.

"_This is all your fault!_" he had screamed at her. "If you hadn't come bursting in like that, they wouldn't have killed him!"

"Well, what would _you _have done? Said _nothing?_" she had shot back. "I had to warn everybody! How was I supposed to know what would happen?"

Eventually their argument had become so violent that Echae had had to separate them. Saetwo had tried to forget about it since then, but Xekrai couldn't let it go, and even now his animosity toward her was as fierce as ever. She could hardly blame him – in truth she felt awful about her part in the mayor's death – but she would never let him know that.

She continued to reflect upon this as she and the others made her way down the hill.

"Hey, who's that guy coming over here?"

"Isn't that Echae? He sure looks like he's in a hurry."

"Huh?" Saetwo jerked her head up and looked at where the others had their attention. Sure enough, Echae was below them, skating along toward the bottom of the hill much more hurriedly than he normally did. Saetwo wondered if he was running away from something, but he was the only one in sight.

"Guys! Come down here! You have to hear this!" he shouted up to them as he dug his wheels into the ground and jerked to a halt.

Saetwo and the others exchanged some confused looks.

"Uh, okay. We'll be right down," Xekrai called back. "Come on, Iake, let's pick up the pace. Those shovels don't carry themselves."

"Oh, just _leave _your stuff!" Echae said in exasperation. "Hurry! Before someone sees us!"

Iake very enthusiastically dropped the shovels and pickaxes and let out a huge sigh of relief. Xekrai rolled his eyes and walked down to Echae, the others following after him.

"Okay, Echae, what's this all about?" Xekrai demanded once they had all gathered around.

"Okay, get this," Echae said in a low voice, signaling that the others should lean in. "The adults want to hold a big meeting in the basement tonight. They think they know a way we can deal with the Bloats."

"_Really?_" exclaimed someone in the crowd.

"_Shhh!_" hissed everyone else.

"Go on, Echae," Xekrai whispered.

"They didn't tell me anything else," Echae replied softly. "In case they got overheard. They just said everybody should meet in the basement at two a.m. That's way after the Bloats' night shift ends. They'll all be asleep by then."

He was referring to the Bloats who stood along the battlements on top of the fortress so they could watch the Zoombinis and make sure they were doing what they were supposed to. Because of the Bloats' inherent laziness, though, they refused to stay up later than ten at night. The Zoombinis had already made several attempts at a rebellion while their captors were asleep, but they had all failed – the Bloats always woke up in time to subdue them quickly.

"Is this plan actually going to _work?_" Xekrai asked irritably, obviously remembering this.

"They sounded pretty confident," Echae confirmed. "I think they thought of something totally new this time."

Although she was skeptical that this plan, whatever it was, would work any better than the others, Saetwo couldn't help but feel excited. Had the adults finally figured out a way to get rid of the Bloats once and for all?

"Tell everyone you know," Echae went on. "They want _everybody _to be at this meeting."

Xekrai nodded. "All right, loser, we'll do what you want. But this better not be a waste of time."

If Echae was annoyed at being called a loser yet again, he didn't show it. "See you guys there," he said to the group. "But in the meantime, keep working so the Bloats don't suspect anything."

And off he went.

Xekrai turned around to face the others. "Okay, you guys heard him. Two o'clock sharp, in the basement. But 'till then, we have to keep working. I assume you know what _that _means," he added, narrowing his gaze at Iake. "And would it kill you not to drop my stuff so hard? You're gonna scratch up my shovel."

Iake sighed. "Sure thing, boss."

-----

The "basement" was a huge, cavernous room located underneath the fortress, made entirely of stone and lit by the occasional hanging brazier. It was meant to store the Bloats' extra rations, but since the Town Hall had fallen into dilapidation the Zoombinis had secretly used it as their meeting place whenever there was something important to discuss.

"It must be _really _important, if they want the entire island to be here," Saetwo remarked Echae as the two of them pushed their way into the already-crowded room. The basement was not equipped to hold over six hundred people, even if they were as small as the Zoombinis.

"So your mom wouldn't even tell you anything about this?" asked Echae.

"Nah. She said I had to wait just like everyone else." She rolled her eyes. "The way she talks, you'd think I wanted to have an early dessert or something."

She and Echae forced their way through the crowd of Zoombinis talking amongst each other in hushed but excitable voices. Everyone on the island had heard that this plan would be the one to do away with the Bloats forever. But what could it be?

"Okay everyone, settle down. Attention!" one voice suddenly rang out over the others. "Quiet!"

The crowd obediently quieted down and turned its attention toward the front of the room. Standing in a cleared-out area was a group of seven adult Zoombinis. In wake of the mayor's untimely departure, these Zoombinis had unofficially elected themselves as the leaders. Saetwo was able to take some pride in that Flouquo was one of them.

"We're glad you could all make it," said the Zoombini who had just spoken. He had three small hairs, droopy eyes, a green nose, and a spring, and his name, Saetwo recalled, was Geeldaru. "As you are all aware by now, my colleagues and I have finally devised a way to do away with the Bloats. This entire time we have been trying to get them to leave, and it hasn't worked. We now believe we've been going about this the entirely wrong way. _We _are the ones who are going to leave."

For a lingering moment, there was dead silence. Then the room burst into protest.

"_Leave _Zoombini Isle?"

"But we've always lived here! Where else can we go?"

"KILL GEELDARU!"

Saetwo stared at Echae. "_What _did you say?"

"Sorry. I got caught up in the moment," Echae muttered, blushing profusely.

"People, _please!_" Geeldaru shouted, trying to regain control. "We have discussed this matter very seriously, and we believe it is the best option left to us. The Bloats have destroyed Zoombini Isle. It's only a matter of time until it can't support life anymore."

"In fact, that's why we think the Bloats came here in the first place," Flouquo went on. "We suspect that they make a living out of this. They invade islands, enslave the native race, then work them until they've depleted the island of all its natural resources. Then they pull up and leave, look for somewhere else to invade, and leave the island for dead. _That _is why they travel so much and have so many maps."

"So you think the Bloats are going to leave?" someone asked. "Couldn't we just wait it out then?"

"We think, without a doubt, they are going to leave," said Flouquo. "But where will that leave us? Zoombini Isle is too far gone for us to save. Bloats or not, we'll all die if we stay here. Our only choice is to leave."

"But _where _will we go?" asked someone else.

"Funny you should ask," said a third Zoombini whose name Saetwo wasn't sure of. "Flouquo, the map, please?"

Flouquo obediently pulled out a large roll of paper and unrolled it onto the ground. Every Zoombini standing near enough crowded around to get a better look. Saetwo, who was halfway to the back of the room, sighed impatiently and flew up to the front, landing beside her mother to get a good look at the map.

"We took this from the Bloats when they weren't looking," Geeldaru explained to the group. He then began gesturing toward various land masses located on the map. "See, this tiny little dot here is Zoombini Isle. These are all places we've traveled to before. Now look at _this._"

He pointed at a continent about eight inches to the northeast of Zoombini Isle. Saetwo and the others looked at it, and they all gasped.

"It's so _big!_" Saetwo marveled.

"Not only that, it's close," said Geeldaru. "We think if we tried to sail there, it would only take a week or so."

"If it's so close, why haven't we ever been there before?" asked a wheeled Zoombini.

"We've always avoided sailing in that direction because of bad weather currents," Geeldaru explained. "Although that was obviously a mistake."

"_Obviously,_" agreed a Zoombini who shared Echae's hair. "Look at the size of it! Who knows how much business we've missed out on? Who knows how many people live there?"

"Well, we _do _know that the Bloats used to live there," Flouquo put in. "But since they left, they're not likely to come back. Which would make this land not only the closest place to sail to, but the safest."

"Makes sense," mused a red-nosed Zoombini. "The Bloats took our home, so why don't we take theirs?"

"Are we all in agreement, then?" Geeldaru asked the crowd. "Do you all understand that leaving is our best strategy?"

Many of the Zoombinis looked sad or reluctant, but eventually everyone nodded and muttered assent.

"So, when exactly were you thinking we would leave?" asked Saetwo.

"As soon as possible," Flouquo replied. "I don't see why we couldn't start tomorrow night."

"But there is one thing," one of the other leaders cut in. "We can't all leave at once. We would make too much noise and take too long, and the Bloats would stop us. Then we could never even attempt this again. We feel it would be safest to send off one boat every few days."

"And we've decided that the children should go first," Geeldaru added. "Protecting our children has always been our top priority, and this case is no exception. If anyone gets away from here safely, it should be them."

"Oh, but Mom!" Saetwo protested, turning to Flouquo. "I want you to be there with me!"

"I know, sweetie, but I have to stay behind and help everyone else. We'll see each other again, don't worry. And anyway, Echae will be with you."

"If I may interrupt," Geeldaru broke in politely. "We have to wrap this up as soon as possible. We've hidden all of our boats about a mile south of here, so tomorrow night the other leaders and I will sail one of them up here, right outside the fortress. Saetwo, get a group of your friends and meet by the shore at this time tomorrow night. We'll have you out of here as soon as possible."

Saetwo nodded.

"And don't worry," Geeldaru addressed the rest of the Zoombinis, "you will all get out of here eventually. I can't promise this will be easy, nor that it will be safe. But I can promise you that our new home is out there somewhere. With everyone's cooperation, we can make it a better home than Zoombini Isle ever was. Do you all understand?"

Everyone nodded.

"Good. Meeting adjourned."

-----

Dajero was not a congenial Bloat at the best of times, and at the worst he was downright brutal. Part of this was simply his nature, although it didn't help that he had to get up at five-thirty every morning for the early morning shift of watching Zoombinis at the fortress.

It was about five to six, and Dajero had just arrived at the fortress and was grumbling to himself about how far a walk it was, when suddenly he stopped dead. To his surprise, someone was already standing at the front door, waiting for him.

"Oh, it's you," said the Bloat. "What do you want?"

"I thought you might like to know that the Zoombinis are planning an escape tonight."

"An escape?" Dajero repeated, scratching his head. "What're you talkin' about?"

"You heard me. At two o'clock in the morning they are going to send off a group in one of their boats, right here in front of the fortress. And they're going to _keep _doing it every few nights until this entire island is clear."

Dajero was dumbfounded. Those little blue guys never gave up, did they? "Well what d'you want _I _should do about it?"

"You? Nothing. I wouldn't trust you to handle the situation. But I suggest you let your superiors know about this, and make sure there are about twenty of them here at two o'clock tonight."

"Sure, whatever you say," Dajero said unsurely. "But I – "

"_Now, _you idiot."

"Right! Right! I'm gone!"

Dajero spun around and scampered back the way he had come.


	5. Escape

"Gosh, thanks for taking me along, Saetwo."

"Well, of course, Uloobu. This is kind of a matter of life and death, after all."

"No, I mean, _thank _you. A _lot_. Like, I'm pretty sure anybody else would have just left me here. You're so nice to me."

"It's no problem."

"No, seriously, nobody's ever been this nice to me before. It's, like, too good to be true. It's like I have friends now. Would you consider us friends? I'd consider us friends, but then that's just because I don't have any other friends and anyone who is nice to me I would – "

"Uloobu? You can shut up any time."

"Right. Sorry. I'm shutting up."

Saetwo and Echae exchanged exasperated glances as they made their way silently down toward the shore where the boat was waiting. Uloobu was flying in between them, trembling with excitement and the effort it was taking to contain his energy.

_He'd be cute if he weren't so annoying, _Saetwo thought to herself.

"Who else did you ask to come, Sae?" Echae whispered.

"Well, Geeldaru said the boats can hold about sixteen of us, so I just said the first sixteen people to get there would get to go."

Echae winced. "Sae! That means Xekrai is gonna be there! Probably Tyscene, too!"

"Oh, Echae, you don't know that. . . . "

"_One side, losers!_"

Saetwo flinched. "Never mind."

She, Echae, and Uloobu backed cautiously off to the side of the road as Xekrai came storming up from behind them.

"About time!" he snapped. "I've got places to be, you know!"

"Xekrai, you certainly are in a cheerful mood today," Echae remarked.

"Oh, shut up, Echae. You'd be ticked off too if your obnoxious sister was following you around everywhere."

"_What did you call me?_" came another, equally shrill voice from behind the hill, and Xekrai's sister, Tyscene, came rolling up, her motor popping as she went. Tyscene had the same haircut as Flouquo, even down to the green baseball cap.

"I called you obnoxious," Xekrai said haughtily. "You wanna make something of it?"

"_Yeah _I wanna make something of it!" Tyscene snarled, thrusting herself in Xekrai's face so that their red noses were almost touching. "The next time you think of _obnoxious, _I think you should look in a mirror!"

"We do _not need this,_" Saetwo sighed.

"Guys, we'd appreciate it if you could save this for some other time," Echae told the quarreling siblings. "We have to get to the fortress before the Bloats find out what we're doing. So shut up and let's go."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Xekrai muttered, turning reluctantly away from Tyscene and glaring daggers at Echae. "Let's get this over with."

The five of them traveled the rest of the way in silence. Painfully aware of the tension surrounding them, Saetwo began to wonder how they would ever accomplish anything on this journey if she and Echae were the only ones among them who got along.

After about fifteen minutes, the fortress rose into view on the horizon, and many Zoombini voices could be heard from the shore. As they drew nearer, Saetwo saw, to her utter dismay, that there were at least thirty people already there.

"We can't fit all these guys in the boat," she said as they wandered onto the shore.

"Speaking of that, where _is_ the boat?" Echae asked.

"Mom should be bringing it around any time now."

"Hey, I think I see it!" Uloobu piped up. "It's coming!"

At the sound of that, everyone excitedly crowded around and looked in the direction Uloobu was gesturing. Sure enough, just visible slipping through the water by the far side of the fortress was one of the Zoombinis' trading boats, a little wooden vessel with a pale yellow sail, and standing in it was Flouquo.

"That is her!" said Echae.

"It's here! It's here!" Uloobu cheered, flying wildly up and down.

"_Shh!_" Saetwo hissed at him. "Do you want the Bloats to hear us?"

Uloobu dipped his head in embarrassment and said nothing else as the boat approached the shore. Saetwo and the others raced to the edge of the beach, anxious to climb on board as quickly as possible.

"Woah! Slow down, kids," said Flouquo. "Saetwo, how many do we have?"

Saetwo did a quick head count, wincing when she realized she would have to include Xekrai and Tyscene. "Thirty-six," she reported.

Flouquo shook her head. "I'm sorry, but this boat can only hold sixteen of you. You're going to have to decide who's going and who's staying."

Uloobu made a small whimpering noise.

"Don't worry, Uloobu. You're coming with us. We'll make sure of it," Echae whispered to him.

"Now, whoever's going," Flouquo continued, "all the supplies you'll need are already packed in here. Just make sure you ration the food, and you'll be fine. There's also a compass in here – make sure it's _always _pointing due northeast. If you do, you should reach land in just about a week, weather permitting."

"We have to spend an entire _week _on that thing?" Tyscene sneered disdainfully, looking the little boat up and down with her solitary eye.

"You don't _have _to do anything. You can stay here if you want," Saetwo said impatiently.

"_Once you reach land,_" Flouquo went on, obviously irritated at being constantly interrupted, "keep travelling inland until you reach the nearest town, or city, or anything you can find. One of the adults will eventually meet up with you there, and we can decide what to do after that. Does everyone understand?"

"Uh huh," the group voiced together, nodding firmly.

"Then that's all I've got to say. Now, who's going?"

Flouquo could not have picked a worse thing to say. In less than three seconds, the entire group had become involved in a mass argument over who deserved to go the most, and most of the arguing was being done in very loud voices, along with a large amount of violent shoving back and forth.

"_Would you be quiet?_" Flouquo shrieked over the uproar. "You're going to wake up the Bloats!"

"Oh, don't worry," came a voice from behind them. "We're already awake."

The argument was instantly forgotten as everyone whipped around in the direction of the voice.

Lining the fortress wall, not thirty feet away from them, were crowded at least a dozen Bloats, all brandishing some sort of weapon and glaring at the Zoombinis. Romelau, the one who had spoken, was standing in the middle, both hands gripping his ever-present spear.

Thirty-six Zoombinis screamed at once.

"_Get on the boat!_" Flouquo yelled, desperate to be heard. "_Everyone get on the boat!_"

Scrambling to obey, every Zoombini on shore threw themselves onto the boat, rocking it back and forth as they crawled over each other in their frantic attempts to make it on.

Every Zoombini except Saetwo, that is, for she had been snatched up by Romelau before she could even move.

"_You _again?" he snarled, pointing his spear dangerously close to her. "You're just one problem after another, ain't ya?"

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTER!" Flouquo screamed from the boat. She had been attempting to protect the other Zoombinis from the onslaught of Bloats that had already crowded around them, but in that instant she forgot them entirely. Leaping off of the boat, Flouquo scrambled directly at Romelau, dodging the advances of the other Bloats, and threw herself at him, knocking all three of them to the ground and freeing Saetwo.

"_Get to the boat, Saetwo! Now!_"

"Come on, Sae! We need you!!" Echae shouted from inside the boat. Turning around, Saetwo saw that in their desperation, he and the others were actually putting up a good fight. The Bloats were swinging their clubs and thrusting their spears, but there were more than twice as many Zoombinis, and they were smaller and quicker. Even Xekrai and Tyscene were helping out, kicking and shoving one hapless Bloat back and forth.

"I'm coming!" Saetwo called, but before she could move, Romelau reached up and grabbed her by one of her propeller blades, jerking her back down.

"You ain't goin' nowhere, missy!"

"How did you find out?" she demanded, desperate to know how their exhaustive plan had failed so easily. "How did you know what we were planning?"

"A little birdie told us," Romelau said innocently. "And now, little girl, you are gonna _die_."

Several loud, panicked screams erupting from the boat caught Saetwo's attention. Thrashing and flailing in Romelau's grasp, Saetwo managed to look past him long enough to see that more than half the Zoombinis had fallen limp and were being dragged away by the Bloats.. One of them was Tyscene, and one, she recognized with a jolt, was Uloobu.

"NO!"

Romelau slammed her against the wall of the fortress. As he did, stars exploded in front of her eyes from the impact, pain shocked through her head, and the entire world began to spin.

"We don't like killin'," Romelau said, bringing his ugly face dangerously close to hers, "but we make exceptions when we got to. Like right now, for instance."

He gestured up with his spear. Although still dizzy and barely able to think straight, Saetwo looked up and saw, leaning over the battlements of the fortress, four Bloats holding up a massive, jagged boulder. Even with their combined strength, they struggled to support it, and Saetwo's blood froze as she realized what they intended to do with it.

Romelau let go over her and backed away, and she dropped like a stone, too disoriented and in too much pain to fly.

"Bye bye, girlie," Romelau said maliciously. Then he turned up to the others. "DROP IT!"

Out of the corner of her eye, Saetwo saw the four Bloats release the boulder, and it plunged toward the earth, enveloping her in its shadow. There was nothing she could do. She squeezed her eyes shut and curled up into a ball, waiting for it all to end –

– when she felt herself being shoved out of the way. She skidded onto the ground several feet away as the boulder landed with a violent crash. . . on top of someone else.

"_MOM!_"

Shaking her head desperately to clear it, Saetwo flew over to where her mother's entire lower half was pinned underneath the giant boulder. Flouquo's face was screwed up in pain, and when she opened her eyes to look at Saetwo, they were already glazing over.

"Mom! Mom, don't die!" Saetwo pleaded, sobbing uncontrollably. "You didn't have to do that! Don't leave me! Mom. . . oh, Mom, _please!_"

"Saetwo. . . ." Flouquo whispered, summoning her last ounce of strength to lift up her head. Her voice was shaky and weak, but it was still full of the warmth and compassion it had always had. "Be brave for me, honey."

And then she was gone.

"_Sae! Please!_" Echae shouted from the boat. "Get over here or we're leaving without you!"

Saetwo didn't even hear him. She was staring silently, disbelievingly, at where her mother would never move again. Finally, she lifted her head back and let out a deafening, soul-wrenching wail.

"Well, that's too bad," said Romelau. "She wasn't a half bad worker."

Upon hearing him, Saetwo's devastation vanished, to be replaced by an anger that began, ever so slowly, to build up inside of her, until finally it boiled over in a burning rage..

She turned and faced Romelau.

"YOU KILLED HER!"

She was never quite sure what happened after that; her fury put her into a sort of half-conscious daze. She was aware of Romelau, and that she was repeatedly slamming into him, pummeling him, giving him the most thorough beating of his life. She remembered seeing the look of shock and terror on his face as he collapsed to the ground, calling out to his fellows. She remembered all the other Bloats abandoning their attack on the boat at his command and racing toward her, and she remembered flying past them all, effortlessly dodging their stabs and swings and assaults coming from all directions.

She remembered reaching the boat, and she remembered Echae shouting to the others to push off. They did, and slowly they began to drift out into the open ocean. The Boats, who were not at all averse to getting wet, chased after them, kicking up water in all directions as they ran. Several of them managed to latch onto the sides of the boat and attempted to grab at the Zoombinis, but still the intrepid group managed to keep the Bloats at bay, shoving them off or else cudgeling them until they couldn't hold on anymore.

Finally, nearly a hundred feet out into the ocean, the last Bloat fell off the side of the boat, leaving the entire group bobbing helplessly up and down in the water.

"_Yeah! _We did it!" Echae cheered.

"That'll teach you to mess with us!" Xekrai shouted over the side of the boat.

"_Swim after them, you morons!_" Romelau bellowed at the other Bloats, thrusting his arm out of the water to point after the escaping Zoombinis.

"But we don't know how to swim!" one of them lamented.

"Yeah! _None _of us do!" said another.

Romelau blinked. "Aw, shoot! You're _right!_" Clenching his fists in frustration, he spun around to face the boat. "_You all are gonna pay for this!_" he roared at them as they sailed away. "_Mark my words, you're gonna pay! You ain't heard the last of us!_"

"What's that? I couldn't _hear _you!" Echae taunted them, causing most of the others to start laughing. Romelau and the other Bloats continued to yell threats at them from where they were floating, but eventually the boat drifted far enough away that their shouts grew incomprehensible, eventually fading into silence.

That was when Saetwo finally came out of her daze.

"Where am I?" she asked distantly.

Echae, standing nearby, was the only one who heard her. Only just then remembering she was there, he walked over and sat down next to her.

"You're on the boat, Sae. It's okay. You made it."

"What happened to everyone else?"

"The Bloats got them. They got Uloobu. . . but don't worry about that right now, Sae. I'm sure they'll be okay."

Saetwo said nothing. She only continued to stare apathetically at the bottom of the boat, numb from the shock of what had transpired.

"Sae. . ." Echae went on, obviously not sure of what to say. "I saw. . . what happened to your mom. I saw what they. . . oh, Sae, I'm so _sorry._"

Then Saetwo fell apart.

Bawling, wailing, the tears flowing down her face, Saetwo leaned helplessly against Echae as her sobs wracked her little body. Echae could only sit silently, his heart breaking at the sight of what was happening to his best friend. The other Zoombinis on the boat noticed her, realized what she was crying about, and solemnly dipped their heads, their joy at finally having escaped the Bloats quickly forgotten. Xekrai was the only one not to react; he simply stood where he was, gazing at Saetwo, completely expressionless.

And so the little troop sat in silent vigil as their boat sailed out into the open sea, Zoombini Isle disappearing forever into the dark.


	6. The Not So Perfect Storm

When you are stuck on a relatively small boat in the middle of the ocean with only the rising and setting of the sun to keep track of time by, it very quickly becomes difficult to remember exactly how much time has passed. Nonetheless, the sixteen travelers were fairly certain that it had been much longer than a week since they had set off. Food supplies were dangerously low, emotions were running high, and there was still no sign of land. Echae, who was having to care for his vegetable of a friend, was suffering the most of all.

"Sae, I know you're upset, but you've gotta eat _something_."

"Why? We've been out at sea for a lot longer than a week, Echae, and we still haven't found the new continent. Let's face it, we're all gonna die out here."

"There's Little Miss Sunshine for you," Xekrai grumbled as he walked past them. "News flash, Saetwo – you're not the _only _one here with a dead parent! Do you see _me _sitting around and moping all the time?"

"Xekrai, be nice," Echae scolded. "We're all going through a hard time right now, and the last thing we need is people fighting."

"Have you noticed, Echae? She doesn't _do _anything! While the rest of us are working our butts off cleaning and rationing and _steering _this dumb thing, she just sits there! She's making it really hard for us to pity her!"

"You'd better watch it, Xekrai, or I'll – "

"No, Echae, don't," Saetwo spoke up, slowly bringing herself back up into a hovering position. "Xekrai's right. I should be pulling my weight around here. And I will from now on."

Echae looked concernedly at her. "You sure? I mean, you look pretty tired and sick. Maybe you're not up to work right this minute."

"Trust me, I'm fine. At least it's night, so it's not hot out."

"It's been cool all day, what with the all the clouds covering up the sun and stuff," piped up a one-eyed Zoombini.

"And there's a wind picking up, too," added one with a spring.

"A pretty strong one," Xekrai noted, feeling himself sliding across the deck from the sudden force of the wind.

"Clouds. . . wind. . . . " Saetwo looked up at the ominous night sky and gulped. "Echae. . . do you remember why Geeldaru said nobody ever sails in this direction?"

"Bad weather currents," Echae responded, realizing fully what this meant.

From high up in the sky was a low rumble which could only have been thunder, and immediately following it, several large drops of rain began to fall from the billowing gray clouds.

"Let's hope they're not _too _bad," said a green-nosed Zoombini, even as the rapidly accelerating winds buffeted her around the deck.

Echae nervously slid over to the edge of the boat and looked out at the tumultuous surface of the sea. Already the wind was churning up huge whitecaps, and as he looked, an enormous, towering wave rose out of the water and loomed over them, covering the entire boat in its immense shadow.

"Something tells me. . . they will be."

The wave crashed down on the boat, throwing the Zoombinis in all directions and drenching them in acrid sea water. At the same instant, the thunderstorm began in earnest as a blinding fork of lightning flashed across the sky, accompanied by a crash of thunder and a pounding sheet of rain falling down all around them.

Xekrai was the first one to recover, staggering to his feet and vigorously shaking the water off of himself. "_Don't lose control of the boat!!_" he shouted to the others, although his voice was barely discernible over the roar of the storm. "_Somebody grab the ropes! We have to stay on course!_"

Several of the others jumped to obey him, scampering over to grab the ropes that held the sail, desperate to keep it from billowing out of control. Saetwo was barely aware of all of this; the wave had pinned her against the deck and jarred her head, and now, as she attempted to get back up, she found that the rain that drummed against her glasses was rendering her sufficiently blind.

"Echae!" she wailed. "I can't see! Where are you?"

She thought she heard an "over here" coming from somewhere near the sail, but when she looked, all the Zoombinis crowded around were identical blue blurs from behind her glasses.

"Saetwo, get over here!" Xekrai called from the same direction. "We need everybody on this!"

She tried, she really did. Fueled by her panic and her desire to do something right, Saetwo struggled back into the air and forced her way toward the mast. . .

But she was flying against the wind. Suddenly, her propeller began to spin in the wrong direction, of its own accord. Saetwo looked behind her and cried out in fright; she no longer had any control over her flight.

And then, the winds blew her up.

-----

"_Where _is Saetwo?" Echae shouted. Since none of the Zoombinis had hands, or any other means of holding onto the ropes, he and another rollerskating Zoombini were having to press tightly against each other, holding the rope between their bodies.

Echae's partner glanced behind them, then did a double take. "She's up there, Echae!" he cried in alarm.

Echae looked up and nearly panicked. Saetwo was at least twenty feet above the boat, the overpowering gale spinning her helplessly about. Her propeller was spinning madly, uncontrollably; she was totally at the mercy of the storm.

"_Somebody help me!!_" she screamed, the rain pummeling her and the wind tossing her so ferociously that she could no longer tell if she was facing up or down.

"Don't worry, Sae! We'll save you!" Echae called up to her, though he doubted she could even hear him. He looked around the boat frantically, his head jerking around in all directions, trying to find something that could possibly be of help. But there was nothing on the boat – just a bunch of empty crates and barrels, and the sail –

The _sail –_

"Xekrai!" Echae shouted across the boat. "We have to turn this sail so it's facing up!"

Echae could barely even hear himself, but thankfully Xekrai seemed to realize he was being spoken to.

"What? Turn it _up? _Why?!"

"Saetwo's up there! It's the only way we can save her!"

"Forget it, Echae! Without the sail we'll be blown off course!"

"Xekrai, this is way more important! Come _on_, we don't have much time!"

Xekrai looked highly skeptical, but as he saw the urgency in Echae's eyes, illuminated by a flash of lightning, he finally acquiesced.

"Everybody listen up!" he shouted to all the other Zoombinis. "We've gotta turn this sail _up!_ So everybody drop what you're doing, grab one of the lower corners, and pull out!"

As much as Echae hated to admit it, Xekrai was a natural born leader. Although everyone else looked highly confused at their orders, they wasted no time in following them. Within moments, all fifteen of them were grasping onto the lower edge of the sail and pulling it backwards, making it more and more horizontal. This would have been a difficult job even if they hadn't had to fight against a raging storm to do it, but slowly and surely, they were succeeding.

But not without consequence. Just as Xekrai had feared, without the sail to guide it, the boat gave a jerk and lurched off to one side, bouncing up and down on top of the cresting waves. The compass needle, which had been oscillating over the northeast mark, began spinning wildly and unpredictably.

"If we get lost, it's your fault, Echae!" Xekrai snapped, but Echae didn't even pay attention to him. It didn't matter if they went a little off course. What mattered was his plan was working.

And not a moment too soon. Just then, a particularly violent wind hit Saetwo in the back, sending her plummeting down from her great height, spiraling in tight circles all the way. She screamed – her glasses were still foggy, she couldn't see where she was going, she was going to crash, this was the end –

She landed gently on something very soft, rolled off, and landed on the deck with a thud.

"Sae!" Echae gasped. "Oh, you're okay! Thank goodness!"

Saetwo barely had time to collect herself before she felt something pressing tightly against her side. She still couldn't see, but she could tell it was Echae giving her the Zoombini equivalent of a hug.

"Echae! Of course I'm okay!" she laughed. Echae didn't respond, and Saetwo suddenly got the impression that he was staring at her.

"Echae? Are _you_ okay?"

"You just laughed, Sae."

"Huh?"

"I haven't heard you laugh in over three months."

Saetwo paused to consider this. She was surprised to realize it, but Echae was right; she hadn't laughed, or indeed even smiled, since before the Bloats had arrived on Zoombini Isle. Now that she thought about it, it had felt very strange to laugh again after so long.

"I guess you just have that effect, Echae," she said teasingly.

"Guys! Would you _snap out of it?!_" Xekrai's voice burst in. "We're not out of this yet!"

Saetwo and Echae immediately turned their attention back to the sail. The Zoombinis were struggling to bring it into a position that would steer them back northeast, for the compass needle was still spinning wildly out of control.

_We're only in this mess because of me, _Saetwo realized. _I have to help! _

She flew over to the sail and started maneuvering it in the only way she was able; by pressing against it from the opposite side. She was exhausted, and the wind and rain continued to beat at her face, but she was completely determined to prove to the others that she was good for something. All the other Zoombinis were working with her too, but despite their best efforts, they couldn't get the sail to move, and continued to skid off in the wrong direction.

"_Echae! _What did I tell you about us getting lost?" Xekrai barked, his voice mostly drowned out by another deafening clap of thunder.

But Echae wasn't even working anymore. He was standing alone on the deck, gazing, wide-eyed, at something off in the distance.

"Xekrai. . . I don't think we're lost."

"What? Are you reading the same compass as me?"

"Xekrai, _look_."

Xekrai grumbled to himself as he let go of his portion of the sail to turn and look where Echae had his attention. For a long moment, he was silent. And then:

"Oh. . . my. . . gosh."

"What? What is it?" asked Saetwo. She and every other Zoombini immediately abandoned their post and raced up to the bow of the boat to stare out into the ocean.

Saetwo gasped. Although it was difficult to make out behind the pouring rain and the spray of the massive waves, the sight before her was unmistakable.

It was land.

An enormous land mass lay stretched over the ocean, less than a mile away from the boat. Saetwo had never seen so much land; the continent must have been thousands of times the size of Zoombini Isle. It reached out to either side of the horizon, and the massive mountains of the inland faded off into the far distance.

"LAND HO!" Xekrai shouted, causing everyone else on the boat to cheer wildly.

The intrepid little Zoombinis had never worked so hard as then, as they worked to bring the boat to shore. The storm was by no means letting up; by contrast, it seemed to only be getting stronger, the wind whipping more ferociously, the rain falling like millions of tiny darts, the waves rolling and breaking and constantly threatening to tip the boat over. But still the Zoombinis managed to keep their little vessel on course, grasping the ropes and keeping the sail aloft, steadying the boat and ensuring it wouldn't capsize. Echae was clinging so hard to Saetwo that she was in no danger of flying off again.

The shore drew closer and closer. It was only a few hundred feet away. . . and now only a hundred. . . less than a hundred. . .

"We're about to land!" Xekrai alerted the others. "Everybody get ready!"

The Zoombinis manning the sail clutched their ropes all the tighter, and the boat began to pick up speed as it rapidly approached the shore.

"We're landing in three. . . two. . . one. . . . "

With a jarring jolt that threw up a fountain of sand, the Zoombinis' little boat crashed into the shore, sending everyone flying forward and collapsing onto the frontmost part of the deck. With no one to control it, the sail flapped violently in the wind for a moment; then, suddenly, the wind began to die down, and the rain began to cease. Ever so slowly, the sail's flapping decreased, until finally it came to rest.

The storm was over.

After a moment of nervous silence, all sixteen Zoombinis slowly drew themselves up and peered over the edge of the boat, surveying their surroundings.

"Well," said Xekrai, "we're here."


	7. A Real Cliffhanger

"This sand. . . isn't very good. . . for rollerskating on," Echae grumbled as he struggled to make his way across the shore. All of the Zoombinis had gotten out of the boat as quickly as they could and were now exploring the land. There was nothing much to see; just a long, narrow stretch of shore that led up to a sheer cliff face stretching several hundred feet above their heads.

"Oh, Echae, it's not that bad," Saetwo said good-naturedly. "You should just be glad we're finally off that boat."

"I _am _glad! I've never been so happy in my whole _life!_"

To prove his point, Echae suddenly flopped over onto his back and started rolling around.

"I'm _free! _I'm _free! _I'm free of that awful boat _forever!_"

Saetwo found herself laughing uncontrollably at Echae's antics until he finally gave up the act and sat up again.

"That felt so good," he said.

"Well, _now _what do we do?" asked Touli, a Zoombini who sported a ponytail similar to Saetwo's . "We're not gonna live _here_, are we?"

"Of course not, stupid. Don't you remember?" Xekrai said impatiently. "We're supposed to travel inland and look for the nearest town. Then we're supposed to stay there until the adults get here."

"I didn't see any towns from out in the ocean," Echae remarked uneasily. "As a matter of fact, this place looked pretty empty."

The Zoombinis all started murmuring at this, with the exception of Xekrai, who sighed in exasperation.

"Look, Echae, we're talking about a whole _continent _here. It's thousands of miles across. Chances are there's _somebody _living here."

"Thousands of miles?" repeated Conneda, another Zoombini with sunglasses, sounding crestfallen. "We're gonna have to travel for thousands of miles?"

"In that case," Echae said with a deep yawn, "I think we should start in the morning. I have boatlag, if that even exists."

"Me too," agreed several of the others, displaying similar signs of exhaustion.

"Fine," Xekrai grumbled. "I guess we can wait for one night. But there had better not be any snorers here."

Relieved, the other Zoombinis collapsed onto the cool sandy beach and curled up, several of them falling asleep almost instantaneously. Saetwo, not knowing what else to do, lay down carefully next to Echae. But she didn't fall asleep. Her mind was too full with the events of that day. She found herself gazing up at the stars, daydreaming, worrying, wondering what strange adventures they would have in this new world.

"What 'cha thinking about, Sae?"

"Huh?" Saetwo turned over to see that Echae was still awake.

"Oh, nothing, really."

"You're worrying. I can tell," Echae said, giving her an encouraging wink. "Don't be afraid. We made it, Sae. The hard part's over. Whatever we do now, it'll be a cinch compared to what we've already been through."

"I sure hope you're right, Echae."

-----

"Hey, you _were _right, Echae. That _was _easy!"

"Shut up, Sae."

It was the next morning, and Saetwo was perched on the very top of the cliff face, looking down at the others. She, naturally, had been able to fly up the cliff with minimal effort, but she was the only one with a propeller, meaning the other fifteen had to struggle their way up a long, winding path carved into the cliff face.

"I don't believe this," Xekrai grumbled as he edged very, very cautiously along the narrow path. "We survive for more than a week in the middle of the ocean with almost no food. . . and now we die by falling off a cliff."

"Oh, you think _you've _got it hard, Xekrai?" Echae lamented, his wheels dangerously slipping and sliding all the way.

After a few more minutes, the group finally made it to the top of the cliff where Saetwo was waiting. Everyone staggered onto the ledge as quickly as they could before collapsing and and taking a few deep, relieved breaths.

"There," said Xekrai. "Now let us never speak of this again."

"Hey, this place actually looks pretty nice," Echae remarked.

Everyone looked. To their surprise, the cliff had led them up to a wide, grassy plain, dotted with a few trees and bushes, that extended off into the distance. There was no road to be seen, but it appeared to be easy traveling compared to what they had just been through.

"Well, let's not waste any time," Xekrai said dutifully as he leapt back to his feet. "We've gotta get going. Everybody follow me."

"Hey, wait a minute!" Saetwo objected. "Since when are _you _the leader?"

Xekrai turned back around to face her.

"You think you can do a better job, four-eyes?"

Saetwo was taken aback. "Well, no, but – "

"A little word to the wise. My dad was the mayor. Leadership is in my family. _Your _family, last time I checked, was a bunch of nobodies. The same goes for all of you." He swept his critical gaze over the entire group. "I'm the only one here who's even slightly qualified to be the leader. So everyone listen to me and do what I tell you, and we'll get through this with minimal suffering."

Nobody said anything. Most of them were staring awkwardly at the ground.

"Now let's go."

Xekrai stomped off, and the others all filed silently after him.

-----

"Xekrai sure knows how to get on somebody's nerves," Echae grumbled. They had been traveling for a few hours with no significant change in the scenery, and unbeknownst to Xekrai, the majority of the idle conversation during that time had been about him.

"Maybe so, but he _is _a good leader," said Conneda. "He's smart, and he knows what he's doing. I think we should listen to him."

"Oh, come on. He's got an ego bigger than Zoombini Isle."

"Leaders _have _to have self-confidence," said Touli. "Otherwise they're not good leaders."

"Am I seriously the only one here who _doesn't _like Xekrai?" Echae exclaimed. "Sae, back me up here."

Saetwo wasn't paying attention. She was looking at something up ahead.

"Sae?"

"I don't like the looks of those bridges. . . . "

Sure enough, the group was approaching a deep, wide chasm that cut through the meadow they were traveling through. Spanning across it were not one, but two rickety wooden bridges. They were supported by a rope that was looped around six metal pegs sticking out of the ground.

"Uh oh. . . . " said Echae. "How far down is it to the bottom?"

Saetwo flew up to the edge and peered down. The cliffs stretched down hundreds of feet – so far that she could barely see to the bottom, but probably to the same elevation as the beach. At the bottom, a small river ran through the ground between the cliff faces.

"Very, very far down," she concluded.

"So why are there _two_ bridges?" wondered Touli.

"In case one breaks," Xekrai snorted. "Have a look at these things, will you? They're _flimsy! _They're not gonna support all of us!"

"We'll probably have to go across one at a time," Echae decided.

"Hey! Who's the leader here?" Xekrai snapped. "_I _make the decisions."

Echae rolled his eyes, making no attempt to hide it. "Fine, Xekrai. What do _you_ think we should do?"

Xekrai pondered the situation for a long time, pacing back and forth in front of the bridges and occasionally stealing a glance over at the other side.

"I've got it!" he finally said. "We'll go across one at a time."

More than one person groaned loudly.

"And since I'm the leader," Xekrai went on, "I opt to go first."

With that, he turned back around and marched confidently across the left bridge, which swayed slightly but otherwise stayed where it was. Saetwo watched after him as he went, but in a moment her eyes were drawn to the cliffs on the other side.

Was she imagining things?

"Uh. . . do those cliffs look like they have faces?"

"No duh, Sae," said Echae. "_All _cliffs have faces."

"No, I mean _actual _faces! With eyes and mouths and – "

She fell silent at the sight of the cliffs in front of her. There _were _faces. Two of them, one next to the other. For a moment, she thought perhaps someone had just carved them there, for whatever reason. . . .

And then one of them _blinked_.

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!!!" she shrieked, bolting behind Echae. "The cliffs are alive!! The cliffs are alive!!"

"Uh. . . Sae. . . are you sure you're not still a little loopy from the storm last night?"

"Echae, I think she's right," said Conneda, stepping forward to get a better look. "I _do _see faces. And I. . . think. . . they're watching us."

"Hey! What are you guys waiting for?" shouted Xekrai, who had safely reached the other side and was tapping his foot impatiently.

"Okay. . . let's not panic," said Echae. "So the cliffs are. . . uh. . . alive. But they can't exactly do anything to us, right? I mean, they can't move. And they left Xekrai alone. So maybe we're safe to go across."

"That sounds like volunteering to me," said Conneda, and he and the others all scrambled backward and cowered together.

"It's okay, Echae. I'll go," Saetwo sighed. She flew over to the left bridge and, trying to keep her eyes off of the large face in front of her, made her way across.

Suddenly, the face sniffed. Saetwo froze in panic. She realized what was happening. The cliff was about to sneeze.

"Ah. . . ah. . . ah. . . CHOO!!"

The force of the sneeze was tremendous. It sent Saetwo flying backwards and landing, very painfully, on the ground. The force of her impact was so great that it sent one of the supporting pegs flying out of its hole before falling into the deep crevice, never to be seen again.

"Bwa ha ha ha!" Xekrai laughed from the other side. "What was _that_, Saetwo? Forget how to fly?"

"Oh my gosh! Sae, are you all right?" Echae asked as he rushed over to her.

Saetwo sat up. "I think that cliff is allergic to me."

"_Allergic? _How can a cliff be – "

"I don't know," Saetwo said brusquely as she got back up. "But I'm getting across one way or another."

This time she flew over the right-hand bridge, and to her relief, this cliff did not respond to her at all.

"Well which one do the rest of us go across?" asked one of the others. "Are the cliffs gonna be _allergic _to us too?"

"I'm not setting foot on either one of those until we know it's safe," agreed someone else.

"Oh for crying out – I'll do it," Conneda grumbled, setting off across the right bridge. He had only gone a few feet, though, before the second cliff began to sniffle and twitch. Conneda didn't have time to react before a second powerful sneeze sent him tumbling backward, freeing another peg from its groove and sending it careening into the canyon.

"We have to be careful!" Echae exclaimed. "If we mess up too many times, all the pegs will fly out and the bridges will collapse!"

"No kidding," Conneda muttered before getting back up and gloomily skating across the left bridge, this time safely making it across.

Saetwo, thoroughly perplexed by this strange puzzle, pondered this for a moment. She knew they had to solve this mystery soon, or more than half of the group would be trapped on the other side, maybe forever. . . .

Suddenly her eyes lit up.

"Hey Touli," she called, "try to go across the left bridge, would you?"

Although her expression suggested she would have rather done anything besides that, Touli nervously nodded agreement, made her way toward the bridge, and started bouncing across it. . . only to be blown back by another sneeze an instant later. Everyone winced, looking horrified. Saetwo, in contrast, was delighted.

"It's our features!" she exclaimed. "They're allergic to certain features! See, Conneda's got sunglasses like Xekrai, and I'll bet the left cliff is allergic to both of them. Touli and I both have ponytails, and the _right _cliff is allergic to both of us! We just have to find out what makes each one sneeze, and we'll get everyone across!"

"Easier said than done," said Xekrai. "How do we get everybody across without messing up three more times?"

"We use logic," Saetwo declared.

-----

Several long minutes and many well-placed Zoombinis later, nearly the entire group had safely made it across the bridges. They had made one mistake and now only two pegs remained holding the bridges up, but Saetwo was confident that they had completely figured out the cliffs' certain allergies.

"Okay, you've both got rollerskates." Saetwo was addressing the only two Zoombinis who were still on the opposite side. "And we decided that the left cliff must be allergic to skates. That means both of you come over here on the right."

The first Zoombini did as she was told, skating over to the right bridge and beginning to make her way across. . . when much to Saetwo's shock, the cliff sneezed her back!

"What the – what happened?" Saetwo cried as the skating Zoombini dizzily stood up and, looking confused and embarrassed, dashed across the left-hand bridge. Saetwo was utterly baffled, and frightened. She had worked so long to figure this out – was she completely wrong?

"Hey! What gives?" cried Echae, who was now the only one who had yet to cross. "Why did the second bridge take her and the first one didn't? She's got skates!"

As Saetwo tried to think of what mistake she had made, she suddenly noticed something she hadn't before.

"But she also has an orange nose. . . . "

"Huh?"

"Echae, have a look. Everybody on the left side has either an orange nose or sunglasses. The only thing everybody on the _right _side has in common is that we _don't _have either of those things. The cliff on the left didn't sneeze me back because I have a ponytail! It sneezed me back because I don't have an orange nose or sunglasses! It's not allergic to what you _do _have; it's allergic to what you _don't _have!!"

Echae blinked several times. "Uh. . . what?"

"Okay, listen. The cliff on the right is allergic to anybody who's got either an orange nose or sunglasses. The one on the left is allergic to everybody who's got neither. That means you take the left bridge."

"Are you sure?"

"I got us this far, didn't I?"

Echae stood where he was for a long moment, obviously terrified. If Saetwo was wrong, the resulting sneeze would free the last peg, and he would never be able to get across.

"Please trust me, Echae," Saetwo pleaded. "I'm sure I'm right."

Echae took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and nodded. Wearing as brave an expression as he could, he crossed over to the left bridge, took one final pause, and began to skate over.

Absolutely nothing happened.

"_We did it!_" Saetwo cheered, spinning around and whooping for joy as everyone else did likewise. "We got everyone across!"

"What do you mean, 'we'?" Echae said with a smirk as he reached the other side of the bridge and skated over to her. "That was all you, Sae."

Saetwo found herself blushing a little. "Aw, it was no big deal. Really."

"Well, now that _that _nightmare is over," Xekrai grumbled once the cheering had died down, "I vote we keep going. We've got a town to find."

And he turned around and walked off. To Saetwo and Echae's surprise, everyone obediently followed after him, looking completely cheerful and willing to do exactly as he said.

"I don't believe it," said Echae. "Xekrai did absolutely nothing, and they're _still _listening to him?!"

"Oh, Echae, it doesn't matter. What matters is we're all still together. Now let's get going."

And the two of them set off, side by side, after the others.

"Well, that was interesting and all, but it was pretty scary," Echae remarked once they had gone a ways. "I sure hope none of the _other _rocks we run into have faces."

"Ah, don't worry, Echae," Saetwo said with the same wink Echae had given her the night before. "I'm sure they won't."


	8. Between a Rock and Another Rock

Immediately after the group's encounter with the Allergic Cliffs, Xekrai remained positive that there was a town or city somewhere on the land mass. Four days later, he was not so sure.

"I'm starting to think Echae was right," Conneda muttered to him as they trudged listlessly along. "Maybe nobody lives here after all."

"No way, man! There is _no way _Echae was right and I was wrong! That just doesn't happen!"

Saetwo, who was flying by, couldn't help but join in on this conversation. "Oh yeah? What about in all those times in school? As I recall, Echae has had straight A-pluses since kindergarten!"

"Sae, you're embarrasing me," said Echae, who was indeed turning a profuse shade of red. "Some of us just happen to like math, that's all."

"That's right, Echae," sneered Xekrai. "They're called _nerds_."

Several Zoombinis snickered, much to Echae's chagrin.

"Well, Xekrai, let me tell you something. We're lost in the middle of nowhere, we're out of food, and nobody knows we're here. I don't need math to tell you that that adds up to a very bad leader."

The same Zoombinis laughed again, and this time Xekrai appeared distressed.

"You're asking for a fight, Echae!" he snarled, sensing his leadership was being threatened.

"Ah, too bad. I don't fight girls."

"THAT DOES IT!!"

Xekrai was about to throw himself at Echae, but stopped dead when Saetwo interposed herself between the two.

"Guys! As much as I would enjoy watching this display of manliness, there's something I think you'd better check out."

"_What?!_" Echae and Xekrai both snapped.

"Over there." She gestured behind them, and everyone looked.

About a hundred feet away was one of the strangest geographic features the group had ever seen: four small caves, two of them set on top of the other two, with a rocky path leading up to each one. Accompanying them were four large boulders; one on the top, one on the bottom, and one on either side.

"What's so great about those?" asked Touli.

"Oh come on, you really think those things occured _naturally?_" said Saetwo. "Caves don't just pop up in neat little rows like that, you know. It seems to me like somebody made them."

"You mean. . . .?" Echae began.

"That's right. Somebody _does _live here."

"We'll see about that," Xekrai said shortly. "I say we get a closer look."

As the group of travelers approached the four caves, they were dismayed to discover that the road they had been following for days came to a dead end. On the other hand, the four stone paths converged together on a ledge behind the caves and continued on – the only possible road that they could see.

"Well, whatever the case may be, it looks like we'll have to go inside," Echae sighed.

"That's right," said Xekrai. "So everybody follow me."

He marched up to the caves and was about to set his foot on one of the paths, when suddenly:

"We've got _visitors!_" came a voice from out of nowhere.

Xekrai jumped back several feet. "Who said that?!"

"Not _me_," said Echae, rather defensively.

"_Uggh!_" came a second voice. "Strange lookin' bunch!"

Xekrai blinked. "Okay, this isn't funny," he said sharply, whipping his head around in all directions. "_Who's doing that?_"

"The flood gates are opened, it seems," remarked a third, distinctively female voice.

"What did we do to deserve this?" groaned a fourth.

By now, all the Zoombinis, Xekrai included, were crowded together, visibly terrified.

"Sae," Echae stammered, "d-do you think this place is. . . haunted?"

"Oh, for Pete's sake! Are you people ugly _and _stupid?" snapped the second voice. "_Look straight ahead!_"

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice, and if any of them had had jaws, they would have dropped open. The four boulders, which had been completely normal a moment before, now each had a face.

"AAAAAAAHHH!!!" Echae shrieked. "GHOST ROCKS!!!"

"Would you lay off with the ghosts?! _We are not ghosts!_" said the boulder on the right, who was the last one to have spoken. Unlike the others, he had only one eye, a protruding rock covering up the place where his left one should have been.

"We prefer the term 'Cave Guards'," agreed the one on the bottom, who was the largest of the four and had a much more dignified voice than the others.

"Oh, great," Xekrai moaned. "More of _this? _Are _all _the rocks here alive?!"

"Heh heh. Nope. We're special," said the left boulder, who had an almost comically large nose. "Nice to meet ya, by the way. We don't see many people around here."

"I wonder why not," Echae muttered.

"I _heard _that," said the bottom boulder, who seemed to be the leader. "If you don't want to pass through the caves, that's all right with us."

"No! We do," Saetwo said apologetically, flying up to them with caution. "We're sorry. We're just not used to, uh, talking rocks, that's all."

Xekrai wasn't so understanding. "You're saying we need your permission to come through here?"

"Well, we _are _the Cave Guards, after all," said the top boulder, the only female of the group.

"Have you guys got names?" asked Touli.

"Well of couse we do," said the bottom boulder in his insufferably haughty tone. "I am Onyx."

"The name's Crystal," said the left one.

"I'm Ferrous," said the top one.

"And who are you?" Xekrai asked the right one.

"I'm Ignorameous," he replied.

All at once, nearly every Zoombini in the group burst out into not-very-well-controlled snickering.

"_What?_" demanded Igno. "Why does everybody always laugh when I say that?!"

"Well, I can already tell I don't want to hang around here any longer," said Xekrai. "So if you'll all excuse me. . . ."

He walked haughtily up to one of the paths on the right and began to march up it, but he hadn't gotten very far before Igno suddenly hurled himself into the air and slammed back down on the stone platform he had been sitting on. The ensuing vibrations caused a small rockslide that sent Xekrai tumbling head over heels down the path and back onto the ground.

"_Pff – _HA HA HA! Bye-bye!"

"_Hey! _What was that all about?!" asked a very annoyed Xekrai, marching back up to Igno and glaring right up at him. "You wanna piece of me, Rocky?"

"Xekrai. . ." said Echae, "for some reason, I don't think picking a fight with a rock is a very good idea."

"Although it would be fun to watch," Saetwo chimed in.

"Oh, shut up, both of you," Xekrai grumbled as he turned and walked up the path that led up to the lower-left cave. Onyx and Crystal both watched him unconcernedly as he went.

"Well, who's next?" asked Onyx.

Saetwo let out a long sigh. "Here goes nothing, I guess."

She flew over to the path that Xekrai had walked up and started flying up herself. She had almost made it when Onyx leapt into the air as Igno had done, crashing down on his perch and sending poor Saetwo crashing back down to the ground.

"Tsk tsk," he remarked.

"What is _with _you guys?" she snapped once she had regained her balance.

"Oh, hey, didn't we tell you?" Crystal asked innocently. "We got rules about who can go where."

"_What?_" Echae cried. "What the heck for?"

"Mostly our own amusement," said Igno.

"We must be selective about our clientele," Ferrous agreed.

"And I suppose we have to figure these rules out ourselves, is that right?" asked Saetwo.

"Oh great. It's the Allergic Cliffs all over again," Echae groaned, shaking his head. "Well, Sae, if you got us through this once, I'm sure you can do it again."

This seemed to get Xekrai's attention.

"Now wait just a sec!" he snapped from where he was standing inside his cave. "Who's the leader here? If _she _can figure this out, then so can I!"

"_You?_" Saetwo couldn't help but laugh. "Xekrai, not to be offensive or anything, but. . . you're not exactly the brainy type."

"Oh, and you are? Look, you had a lucky break. _I _can get us through this single-handedly."

"You mean _no-_handedly?" Echae corrected.

"SHUT UP!! I'm in charge, and that means we listen to _me! _So everybody just pipe down and let me think."

"You obviously need the practice," Igno muttered.

"That goes for you too!" Xekrai barked.

"Echae, we're not gonna let him go _through _with this, are we?" Saetwo asked, flying around in agitated little circles. "If these guys are anything like the last time, he can't figure this out on his own!"

"Aw, Sae, why don't we let him try? It's not like we fall off a cliff if he's wrong. We might as well humor him."

"He _is _the leader," agreed a purple-nosed Zoombini. "Saetwo, you should put more faith in him."

Saetwo sighed deeply, not attempting to stop her eyes from rolling. "Fine. Xekrai can do it."

-----

"I can't believe he actually did it."

Saetwo was inside the upper-left cave, between Crystal and Ferrous, with three other Zoombinis, and she was not in a good mood. All the Zoombinis were now safely occupying one cave or another, and each one of them had been put there by Xekrai. All of them, except for Saetwo and Echae, were cheering.

"I knew he could do it!" Touli squealed from next to Saetwo. "Xekrai's the best leader ever!"

"We're lucky to have him!" agreed one of the others.

Even the Cliff Guards seemed impressed. "That was very good work, blue one!" Ferrous called down to Xekrai in her melodic voice.

"I am forced to agree," said Onyx. "You are quite clever."

"We-he-hell, it wasn't _that _hard," Xekrai replied with the falsest modesty Saetwo had ever heard. "You, Onyx, won't take anbody with a ponytail or a spring, and Crystal over there won't take anybody with sunglasses or a green nose. _Anybody _could have figured it out."

"I think I'm gonna be sick," Saetwo grumbled.

"You are a very good leader," Onyx informed Xekrai, "and you have passed our test. You and all your friends are free to go."

"And don't come back. Please. Looking at you make me wish I didn't even have _one _eye," said Igno.

"I'LL SHOW YOU!!" Xekrai screamed as he jumped out of his cave, leapt over Onyx, and proceeded to stomp repeatedly on top of Igno as hard as he possibly could.

"Heh-heh-heh-heh!" Igno cackled, obviously highly amused by this.

"Although you still have a bit of a temper. . . ." Onyx commented.

"Come on, you guys, let's get out of here," Saetwo said to Touli and the others. In very low spirits, she flew to the back of the cave and out onto the path. The Zoombinis from all the other caves quickly joined her, and finally Xekrai seemed to notice what was going on and abandoned his assault on Igno.

"This isn't over!" he promised the boulder before running after the others.

"Well, I didn't think he had it in him," said Echae as they left, "but Xekrai actually pulled it off. Maybe he's a better leader than we thought."

"I don't care _how _good he is. This is just going to give him an even bigger head, and that's just going to get us into trouble. Hey, the rocks are saying goodbye to us. Bye, everyone!"

"Good luck on your journey!" Ferrous called after them.

"Say hi to Arno!" Crystal piped up.

"Arno? Who's Arno?" Saetwo wondered.

"Who cares?" Xekrai griped as he marched on ahead of her. "Just as long as he's not another talking rock. I've had enough of those to last me a long time."


	9. Triple Troll Trouble

Everything was silent and peaceful above the leafy canopy. A few birds were perched on the branches, preening themselves and not paying much attention to the rest of the world. Suddenly, the trees they were standing on began to rustle and shake, and they all quickly took off an instant before Saetwo came crashing up through the leaves. She flew about fifty feet higher, paused in midair, and started scanning the entire land that she had a view of, stretching for miles from horizon to horizon.

Finally, convinced she had seen everything, she sighed and lowered herself back through the trees and onto the ground, where the others were waiting for her.

"There's still nobody else here, Xekrai. I looked," she reported. "We're the only Zoombinis for a thousand miles."

"Some other group should have gotten here by now," Echae said in concern. "Although after what happened the night we left. . . I don't know if anybody's going to come."

"Yeah, the Bloats probably locked them up really good after all that," said Conneda. "What d'you think, Xekrai? Should we keep looking or start heading out again?"

"Huh? Oh, sorry, I wasn't listening."

Echae glared at him. "Xekrai, your _sister's_ back there. Any number of awful things could be happening to her. Aren't you at all concerned about her safety?"

"Uh. . . not really. Should I be?"

Echae suddenly wished he had a hand to smack himself in the forehead with.

"Ah, brotherly love," Saetwo remarked. "Look, Xekrai, just tell us what you want us to do. Should we keep waiting for the others to show up or not?"

Xekrai groaned. "I don't know! How am I supposed to think about this stuff on an empty stomach? I'm _starving!_"

"I know what you mean," Echae agreed as he flopped on the ground in exhaustion. "It's been ages since we've had any good food. I'm sick of eating berries."

"What I wouldn't give for some good old mac and cheese," a three-haired Zoombini sighed dreamily as he gazed up at the sky. "Or maybe some pancakes and syrup. . . ."

"A BLT sandwich," Xekrai joined in.

"Strawberry cheesecake," Touli moaned longingly.

"Aw, you guys aren't thinkin' big enough," Echae said mischievously. "I'd go for some tomato soup, smoked salmon, fettucini alfredo, mashed potatoes, a frothy chocolate milkshake, and a great big – "

"_Pizza!_"

"Yeah, pizza sounds good." Echae paused, then blinked. "Wait – who said that?"

"_Pizza pizza pizza pizza – come on, pizza, you know I love you!_"

"Whoever it is, sounds like he's over there," said Saetwo, gazing past a group of bushes.

Everyone crowded around the bushes and peered into the clearing where the voice was coming from.

"I don't believe it," Xekrai said after a moment of stunned silence. "I ask for no more talking rocks, so what do they give me? A talking _tree trunk_."

Xekrai's comment was not inappropriate, for the strange figure in the clearing, standing beneath yet another towering cliff face, looked more like a tree trunk than anything else – although he was more like a stump, barely taller than any of the Zoombinis. He had his twiglike arms folded and was shuffling around impatiently in a circle.

"What the heck _is _that thing?" Conneda whispered.

"I _want _a _pizza!_" pouted the tree trunk.

"Well, then, maybe you should have double-checked the size of this thing before you _bought _it," came another voice, unpleasantly sardonic.

Saetwo strained to look in the direction of the voice, and her eyes grew wide. "Holy cow. There's _three _of 'em."

Sure enough, two more tree creatures were standing in the clearing, watching the first one expectantly. The one who had spoken was so tall and skinny that she looked almost like a stick – physically she was the first one's polar opposite, although she was wearing the same sour expression. The third one was of medium height and neither skinny nor fat, but in contrast to the other two, he was hanging back, looking rather timid.

"I can't believe I _trusted _those yellow freaks!" spat the first one, violently kicking an unseen object in front of him. "They said this thing would be the answer to all our problems. _Right_. Maybe if we were about twenty feet taller!!"

"I wanna get a closer look at these guys," Saetwo whispered.

"Sae, _don't! _They don't look safe!" Echae hissed, but his friend wouldn't listen. Saetwo was normally smart enough, but she had a tendency to act on a whim and make some rather bad decisions. It had happened when she sneaked onto the Bloats' ship, and it was happening again now.

"Sae, get _back _here!" Echae exclaimed as she made to fly out of the bushes. He reached out to haul her back, but in the process tripped over his wheels and toppled over, crashing into Saetwo and sending them both flying.

"If I ever see them again. . . ." the fat tree truck growled threateningly. "I swear, I'm gonna get my hands on those – "

He was cut off as Saetwo and Echae suddenly came crashing through the undergrowth and landed directly in front of him.

"Uh. . . hi," Saetwo said in embarrassment.

". . .Fleens?" the tree trunk finished his sentence, staring at them. Suddenly he raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Hey! You're not Fleens!"

The two Zoombinis had been struggling to get off of each other, but at the sound of that they both froze in horror and gazed up at the creature.

"Did you say. . ." Saetwo asked, her voice shaking. "Do you mean. . . there are _Fleens _here?"

"And I was ready to give them a real piece of my mind," the tree trunk muttered to himself, ignoring her. He turned his back on her and Echae and started pacing again. "What gives those guys a right to do a thing like that? Don't they know who I _am? _I mean, _everybody _on this stupid rock knows who _I _am!"

"We don't," said Echae. Saetwo, on the other hand, suddenly felt a little light going on in her head.

"Wait a minute. . . are you Arno?"

"That's right! Arno the Almost Omnivorous," he declared. "These here are my pals, Willomaen and Shyler."

"Charmed," Willomaen said stiffly, not sounding very charmed at all.

"Uh. . . _almost _omnivorous?" Echae repeated.

"Well, I'm a little particular about my pizza toppings. We're Pizza Trolls, see."

"Hey! Is it safe to come out or what?" came the demanding voice of Xekrai, sticking his head out of the bushes. "We're all waiting back here!"

"Yeah, Xekrai, these guys are fine," said Saetwo. "Come on out."

"Oooh! There's _lots _of little blue guys!" Shyler exclaimed in interest as Xekrai and the others filed cautiously into the open.

"Great," Arno muttered. "Well, whatever you guys are. . . MAKE ME A PIZZA!!"

"_And _me," said Willomaen.

"Me too, please," said Shyler.

Xekrai didn't look too happy about that. "_What? _You don't even know us for ten seconds and you want us to make your lunch for you?! Why should we do that?"

"Because _we _can't work this pizza-making machine!" Arno shot back, pointing behind them at the cliff face.

The Zoombinis turned around and found themselves staring at the strangest contraption they had ever seen – a stone machine at least five times their height and covered in buttons. On the top was a huge button with a picture of a plain pizza and a plain ice cream sundae. Below it were a series of smaller buttons; five of them bore a picture of a pizza topped with either pepperoni, olives, peppers, mushrooms, or cheese, while three of them had pictures of a sundae with either whipped cream, hot fudge, or a cherry. On one side of the machine was a large hole that exposed its inner workings, and higher up was what looked like a huge mouth.

"You. . . make. . . pizzas with this thing, huh?" Echae remarked, looking it up and down.

"You're _supposed _to. But we're just a little too _short_ to reach all those buttons!" Arno fumed. "So we would be. . . ah. . . _highly _appreciative if you guys would help us out."

"Yeah, right," Xekrai scoffed. "Look, we're sorry about your pizza machine and wish you the best of luck and all, but we didn't come here to be servants for a bunch of tree trunks. We got places to be."

"Okay, let me rephrase that," said Arno. Xekrai had been about to march off when the leader of the Pizza Trolls stepped directly in front of him.

"NOBODY LEAVES UNTIL I GET A PIZZA!!"

"I'm with him," Shyler put in awkwardly.

"But we're shorter than you!" Conneda objected. "We can't reach any of those buttons!"

"_She _can," said Arno, pointing directly at Saetwo.

"Uh oh," she said.

"Look, kid, just use your crazy propeller thing and fly up there," Willomaen ordered. "It's easy. You just push the button for whatever topping you want, and when you're done you push the _big _button. Even you should be able to handle that."

Saetwo felt a pang of annoyance. She would have been happy to help the Pizza Trolls out if they hadn't been being so _rude_.

"Fine," she sighed. "If you'll let us out of here afterward. What do you guys want on your pizzas?"

"What? You have to _ask _us?" Arno scoffed. "Truly good servants shouldn't have to ask. They should just know."

"We are NOT your SERVANTS!!" Xekrai snarled.

"Yeah! And anyway, how am supposed to know what you guys want without you telling me?" Saetwo asked irritably. "Just tell me!"

"Forget it. That wasn't part of the deal," Arno sniffed, folding his arms. "If you're so smart, figure it out."

"AAAAAGHH!!" Saetwo groaned in exasperation. "Why is everyone here so _difficult?!_"

"It's okay, Sae. I'll help you out," Echae spoke up. "With two of us working, we'll get done twice as fast."

Saetwo shot him a look. "You sure, Echae? I don't want you getting mixed up in this."

Echae shrugged. "Hey, that's what friends are for, right? You make the pizza, I'll bring it over to them."

Saetwo suddenly felt much more cheerful. "Thanks, Echae. You're the best."

"Yeah, I know."

With that, the two of them slowly and cautiously approached the giant pizza-making machine, gazing up at it.

"Here goes nothing," said Saetwo. She flew up to the topmost button, which displayed a pizza with olives, and pushed it. To her astonishment, the giant picture of the plain pizza instantly changed so that now it, too, had olives on it.

"If this is as easy as I think, I sure wish we'd had one of these back home," she marveled as she pushed the giant button.

All at once, the machine started making noise. The gears cranked, the bellows pumped, and the large mouth literally belched out a platter holding exactly what had been on the button: a pizza with olives and a vanilla ice cream.

"Heads up, Echae!" Saetwo called, and her companion dutifully scrambled directly underneath the machine so that the platter fell right onto his head. Luckily, Echae's balance was excellent, as the tray wobbled a little but stayed safely where it was.

"All right, you guys, order up," he announced to the Pizza Trolls, skating over to them and sliding the tray onto a slab of rock between the three of them. None of them looked very pleased with it, but being the kind and patient creatures that they were, let Echae know politely.

"MORE TOPPINGS!!!" Arno bellowed.

"Something's _wrong!_" Willomaen huffed.

"Hmm. . . there's something there I don't want," observed Shyler, whose obsequiousness was making him just as annoying as the others.

"All right, _fine_. We'll try again," Echae grumbled as he skated back to the machine. As he did so, Arno grabbed the rejected pizza and flung it onto a large boulder behind him.

"Better try peppers this time, Sae," Echae reported. Saetwo nodded and pushed the second button to place peppers on the giant pizza button, then pressed the olive button a second time. It popped back up, and the olives vanished from the picture instantaneously.

The three trolls weren't much happier with this pizza.

"_Something _on that _I don't like!_" Arno snapped, bringing his face dangerously close to Echae's.

"_Eeew! _Some of that stuff. . .!" Willomaen whined, shaking her hands in agitation.

"I'd like more toppings, please," Shyler said quietly, tossing it onto another boulder behind him.

"Why don't we help him out first?" Saetwo asked Echae as he skated back, referring to Shyler. "At least he's polite."

"Yeah, but on the other hand, I'd hate to see those other two when they're _angry_."

Next they decided to try a pizza with peppers and pepperoni. Saetwo pressed the pepperoni button and the master button, expelling the pizza safely down to Echae. Unfortunately, all three trolls reacted to this one with aversion. No one would touch it, so it was thrown inside a ring of stones far away from all of them.

"_None _of them like pepperoni?" asked Saetwo.

"Well, we don't know that. Those first two might have just been reacting to the peppers."

"Man, this is harder than it looks. And we haven't even gotten to the ice cream."

They made several more failed attempts, but in the process, gradually got to know what each troll wanted on his or her pizza. Unfortunately, the three of them were looking more and more ticked off with every unsatisfactory pizza that was sent their way.

"Hurry up, you guys," scolded Xekrai, who, along with the other Zoombinis, had been watching this whole thing. "We don't have all day."

"Why don't you come _help _us, Xekrai?" Saetwo demanded from up by the master button. "Since you're so smart and everything, this should be no problem for you!"

"No, no, you two are doing fine by yourselves."

"Hey! We're _waiting _over here!" Arno shouted.

Letting out a moan of defeat, Saetwo sank back down to Echae's level. "Echae, how are we gonna do this? For once I have no idea! We'll never be able to please all of them before they get _really_ mad at us!"

"Well, look at all those pizzas behind Shyler. They've all got toppings that he _wants_. Peppers, mushrooms, and a cherry."

"Yeah? So?"

"So. . . why don't we just put them together?"

Saetwo stared at him for a moment.

"Echae, you're a _genius!!_"

She flew delightedly back up to the machine, pushed the appropriate buttons, and sent Echae on his way with a fresh peppers-and-mushroom pizza, complemented with a cherry sundae.

"Something _must go!_"

"Some of that I won't eat!"

"Thank you."

"All right, that _does _it! I'm sick and tired of you – wait," Echae broke off. "_What'd _you say?"

"I said thank you!" said Shyler, scooping up the pizza with a wide grin and hopping back up onto his boulder.

"All _right! _You did it, Echae!" Saetwo cheered. Echae could only stand there dumbly.

Willomaen found herself satisfied soon afterward as she was presented with a cheese pizza and a chocolate sundae. "My compliments to the chef!" she said as she licked her lips, grabbing the platter and jumping back onto the boulder behind her.

"Maybe this _won't _be so hard!" Saetwo said optimistically. "Now the only one left is fatty over there."

"_Watch _it, pal!" Arno snarled. He was practically fuming by now. "I've been waiting long enough! You guys had better get me my pizza _now_,or – "

"Yeah, yeah, we're on it. Don't sweat it," Echae muttered. Figuring it wouldn't take long at all to find out what the final Pizza Troll wanted, he skated over and scanned the various rejected pizzas behind Arno. . . and came to a disappointing realization.

"Oh, man, Sae," he moaned, his heart plummeting, "I have no idea what he wants on his ice cream!"

"What? You mean _none _of his pizzas have ice cream toppings on them?!" Saetwo exclaimed. "Well, it's okay. We'll figure it out. Let's give him a cherry."

"Uh, wait a minute, Saetwo," Xekrai spoke up. "There's something you have to know."

Without warning, Saetwo spun around and glared at him. "Oh, _now _you want to help us?" she spat. "Well, forget it. We're getting along great without you."

"Saetwo, I'm _serious_. _Listen _to me," Xekrai said sternly, but Saetwo had already flown back to the pizza machine. Ignoring him, she punched in the buttons for a pepperoni-and-olive pizza with a cherry sundae and sent the concoction out to Echae. He caught it easily, but still didn't move from where he was standing.

"Sae, don't you think maybe we should hear what he has to say?" he asked timidly.

"_No._"

"Okay, okay. . . ."

Very anxiously, Echae skated over to Arno and deposited the pizza in front of him. To Saetwo's disappointment, he responded with yet another of his furious rants. . . and then, to her shock, he gave Echae a powerful smack that sent him bouncing backwards and slamming into the machine.

"_Hey!_" she snarled, thrusting herself in the troll's face. "You can't do that!"

"Who says? If I don't get my pizza _now_. . . I won't be responsible for my actions!"

Saetwo flew back over to Echae, who was sitting on the ground in a daze. "Are you okay, Echae?" she asked anxiously. "We gotta get this right the next time. He's getting violent."

"No kidding." Echae slowly clambered to his feet. "But Sae, there's two more ice cream toppings we haven't tried. He could want either one. How do we know which?"

Saetwo swallowed hard. "We'll just have to guess."

Xekrai was obviously getting fed up. "Would you two blockheads _listen _to me, before it's too late?! There's something you don't know!"

Echae looked highly grieved to ignore him, but decided Saetwo probably knew best. Saetwo, meanwhile, flew up to the machine and looked anxiously at the two buttons she had to decide between. They had only one more chance. How could she decide which one was right?

"Which one should I pick, Echae?"

"You decide, Sae. I trust you."

Saetwo winced. Echae couldn't have picked a worse thing to say. Now if she guessed wrong, she knew how much she'd be letting him down. . . .

"Sae, we're out of time. Just pick one _now!_"

She was panicking. She whipped her head back and forth between the buttons, faster and faster. She couldn't figure it out. There was no way. She had to guess.

"I'll. . . try the chocolate sauce," she decided worriedly. With a silent prayer, she pressed the corresponding button and then the master button. Her heart pounding furiously, she watched as Echae caught the pizza and skated it over to Arno, cautiously sliding it down in front of him.

As Arno saw it, his eyes grew wide, his fingers flexed in anticipation, and he exclaimed. . . .

"EEEEEEEW!! YUCK!!"

Echae realized what this meant, but he was too late to stop it. He spun around and tried to make a mad dash to safety, but it was no use. Arno gave him another smack – much more powerful than the first. So much so that it sent Echae careening into the sky, shrinking and finally disappearing into the distance as his prolonged scream faded into silence.

"ECHAE!!"

"He had it coming!" said Arno.

"You _monster!_" Saetwo cried, tears springing to her eyes. "How could you do that?!"

"Hey, I'll do _anything _when I'm hungry."

Saetwo wanted nothing more at that moment than to tear Arno limb from limb, but obviously she wasn't capable of that. Realizing she still had to finish what they had started, she turned back to the machine and, overcome with agony and humiliation, removed the chocolate sauce from the sundae and added whipped cream. She pressed the master button, and since Echae was gone, she herself had to zoom underneath the mouth and catch the pizza on her head. Then she stormed over to the Pizza Troll and violently slammed the platter in front of him.

"The _perfect pizza!_" Arno joyfully blurted out, and without even a word of thanks, he snatched the tray up and leapt onto the boulder behind him.

"HAVE A PIZZA PAAAAAARTY!" he sang, and as if this were a signal, all three Pizza Trolls began voraciously devouring their lunches, obviously no longer caring what the Zoombinis did.

"_What did I tell you?!_" came a voice from near the mourning Saetwo. She turned around to see Xekrai. "You should have _listened _to me! Now Echae's gone and it's your fault!"

"Oh, it's _my _fault?" Saetwo bitterly retorted. "And I suppose you _knew _what topping I was supposed to choose?"

"Yes, I did! He wanted whipped cream because the skinny one already wanted chocolate sauce and the annoying one already wanted a cherry!"

"What's _that _got to do with it?"

"Take a _look_, Saetwo. All of the ingredients on their pizzas are _completely different! _None of them wanted any of the same things!"

Stunned, Saetwo turned back to the Pizza Trolls and looked. Her blood froze as she realized Xekrai was right. Not one topping of any kind was on more than one pizza.

"I knew you two wouldn't figure it out, so I tried to tell you," Xekrai went on. "But noooo, you wouldn't _listen _to me, would you?"

"I'm _sorry_, all right?!" Saetwo cried. "Now let's just go find Echae, _please!_"

"Forget it, Saetwo. I really don't care if Echae's here or not. He never did anything except get on my nerves. We're out of here."

"How can you – "

"Let's go, guys!" Xekrai shouted to the other Zoombinis. Although most of them looked shocked or remorseful at the idea of leaving Echae behind, they were far to frightened to say anything. Reluctantly, they all followed after Xekrai as he led them along the path. The Pizza Trolls were still too busy eating to pay them any mind.

For a moment, Saetwo stayed where she was, torn between Echae and the group. She couldn't possibly abandon him – they were best friends, and this whole thing was her fault! But as she saw the group heading off into the distance, she realized that if she left them, she might never find them _or _Echae again. She might be condemned to wander this continent alone for the rest of her life.

Although it was the most painful decision of her life, she finally made up her mind and flew off after the others.

_I swear I'll find you again, Echae! _she thought. _I don't care what Xekrai says! I already lost my mom. I'm _not _losing my best friend!_


	10. Shelter Rock

"Hey, guys, check this out!"

"Huh?" Saetwo had been gazing at the ground, lost in thought, but now she looked up at what Conneda was pointing out. On the side of the road just up ahead was a very large, almost cubical boulder. Carved very deeply into it were several rows of small alcoves that were, coincidentally enough, just a Zoombini's size. In front of it was a little fire pit with a black pot resting over it. Farther back was a sparkling pond, and just past the boulder, the road split into two. Both new roads wandered off and vanished into the distance.

"Look at this!" someone remarked. "We've finally got a place to stay!"

"It's even got FOOD!! FOODFOODFOODFOODFOOD!!!" Conneda cheered at the sight of the boiling contents of the pot. As he did so, nearly everyone made a mad dash for the campfire, cheering joyfully and crowding around. Even Xekrai looked happy for once as he doled himself out an ample serving of the soup and messily gulped it down.

"Can we please stay here, Xekrai?" asked a wheeled Zoombini as she sidled up to him. "We're all so tired, and this place is just perfect for us!"

Xekrai looked shocked. "What – you mean _live _here?"

Conneda quickly pulled his face out of his bowl of soup. "Why not? We're all sick of traveling around. And let's face it, we're not gonna find anyplace better."

"Guys, this is just a rest stop," Xekrai said impatiently. "We can stay for a while, but we're not _living _here."

Most of the others grumbled but didn't argue.

"This place couldn't possibly hold _all _the Zoombinis anyway. We need someplace bigger," Xekrai continued. "Let's stay here for a few days and then decide what to do."

"Well, we're _supposed _to wait for the adults, remember?" Saetwo reminded him. "And since there definitely no cities here anywhere, that means we'll have to wait here."

Xekrai exhaled violently. "_Fine_. We'll wait for the adults to show up. But who knows how long that'll take? What if they don't find us? What if they never even got away from Zoombini Isle?"

"They did. I'm sure they did."

"Well, if they did, they'd better get here fast. I'm not waiting around forever."

-----

As the Zoombinis got used to staying at Shelter Rock, they began learning some very interesting things about it. Less than an hour after they arrived, Xekrai discovered that the various mushrooms growing around the campsite changed colors whenever they were touched (needless to say, the ground was dotted with an array of pinks, greens, and blues before long). Touli and Conneda, who had been fishing in the pond, made the very startling discovery that what they had thought were a few rocks protruding from the water were actually the head and knees of a large gray humanoid, who broke the surface long enough to scrub himself with a brush and then resubmerged. A few of the younger Zoombinis had been playing around the campfire when the ring of stones surrounding it were pushed out of the ground by a series of organ pipes, which puffed out a tuneful melody before disappearing back underground.

Had the group not already had to deal with sneezing cliffs, talking boulders, and pizza-eating trolls, all this might have disturbed them, but now they quickly dismissed it as normal – or at least, as normal as life here could possibly be.

The only person who wasn't off exploring the campsite was Saetwo. She couldn't stop thinking about Echae. All she was capable of doing was laying inside one of the compartments and worrying about him. The more she thought about it, the more she was regretting her decision. Why had she left him behind? How was he ever supposed to find them now?

Her guilt only grew as the day wore on, and by the time the sun had set, she couldn't take it anymore.

_First thing tomorrow_, she told herself, _I'm going to find him_.

-----

She woke up at the crack of dawn the next day. After squirming her way out of her alcove, she paused for a moment to admire the early morning scenery. Everything was shrouded by a light fog, and the rising sun covered the landscape in a pale light. Seeing it made her feel a little better, but at the same time made her wish Echae were there to see it too.

Not wasting any more time, she took off flying in the direction the group had come the previous day. Before long she rose up until she was flying hundreds of feet above the ground, all the time looking anxiously around for any sign of her friend.

"Echae?" she called. "Echae, where are you?"

But she received no answer, and although she had a sweeping view of the land from her vantage point, she couldn't see Echae anywhere.

Saetwo spent the entire day looking for him, flying tirelessly over the rocky landscape for hours on end and stopping only for a few minutes at a time. As the light began to fade from the sky and she still hadn't found him, she let out a dejected sigh and flew back to Shelter Rock.

It was well past dark when she arrived, and she was surprised to find most of the others gathered around a flickering campfire.

"Is that Saetwo?" one of them asked.

"Saetwo, where _were _you?!" Touli exclaimed as everyone rushed over to her. "You've been gone all day! We thought something had happened to you!"

"No, I'm fine," Saetwo muttered, not feeling much like talking.

"But where _were _you?" Xekrai demanded. "And why the heck did you take off without telling anyone?"

"If you have to know, I was looking for Echae," she replied curtly. "And I'll be going again tomorrow."

And she flew off, leaving everyone stunned.

True to her word, Saetwo spent the next day searching all over again. When she was met with no success, she tried again the next day, and the day after that. She barely even noticed how little sleep she was getting, or the concerned looks that the well-fed and relaxed Zoombinis were giving her whenever she returned. Her guilt wouldn't let her stop.

One week after the group had arrived at Shelter Rock, Saetwo woke up to find a small group of Zoombinis gathered around her ground-level alcove.

"What's going on?" she asked groggily.

"Saetwo, we have to talk to you," said Touli. "We know you're all upset about Echae and stuff, but you're taking this way too far."

"You gotta give it a rest. We're worried about you," agreed the skating Zoombini who had helped Echae on board the boat.

Saetwo slowly drew herself up. "You don't get it, guys," she sighed. "Echae's my best friend. And it's my fault he's gone. If I stopped looking for him, I couldn't live with myself."

"Well, you're gonna have to," said Conneda. "Xekrai says we're leaving today."

"Oh, well that's – _what?!_"

Saetwo shoved her way past the others and flew directly over to Xekrai, who was standing with the remainder of the group at the fork in the road.

"Glad you could join us, Saetwo," he said. "In case you didn't hear, we're leaving."

"What are you talking about?! We're supposed to wait _here_, remember?"

"Listen, Saetwo. All that time you were out looking for Echae, did you ever see him?"

"No, but – "

"Did you see _anybody?_"

Saetwo was turning red in embarrassment. "What's that got to do with it?"

"If anyone else was going to come, they would have gotten here by now. I know you don't want to hear it, but face it, we're _alone_. The big strong grownups aren't coming to help us."

"You don't know that!"

"Saetwo, remember what happened the night we left," said the purple-nosed Zoombini. "Do you really think the Bloats would let that happen again?"

She couldn't think of an argument for that one. "No. . . I guess not."

"And we all want to get going," said Xekrai. "And I know what you're gonna say, but Echae's not coming back. He's gone, Saetwo."

She pondered this, and was shocked to find that she didn't want to argue with him. As a matter of fact, he was probably right. She couldn't believe it, and it made her all the sadder to think about it, but Echae probably was gone for good.

"Okay."

Xekrai looked surprised. "Just 'okay'? Not 'Shut up, Xekrai, you don't know anything'?"

"No. I think you're right."

Xekrai was astonished, but after a moment he grinned smugly. "Well, that's more like it."

"Which way are we gonna go, Xekrai?" asked one of the others.

"We'll discuss that right now. Now, the road on the left goes north, which probably means. . . . "

Saetwo didn't want to take part in that discussion, so she turned around and flew back to the boulder, where some of the others were still gathered around.

"What did Xekrai say?" asked Touli.

"That we should stop waiting for the adults. He thinks they're not coming."

"And what did you say?"

"I agreed with him."

Touli was silent for a moment. "No, really, what did you say."

"Touli, I'm sick of arguing with him. I lost my best friend because I was too immature to listen to him. So from now on I'm just going to do what he says."

Touli and the others obviously had no idea how to react to this, so they said nothing.

"But I'll tell you one thing. I don't think that's really why Xekrai wants to leave."

"Why, then?"

"He wants to prove himself. Xekrai's not the guy who waits around for the adults to take care of anything. I think he _hopes _they get here, just so they can see how much he's done. He wants to get us through this all by himself."

The group over by the roads seemed to have come to a consensus, so Saetwo and the others went over to hear the decision.

"We made up our minds," said Xekrai. "We're going south. Unless anyone has an objection."

It didn't really matter to Saetwo either way, so she just shook her head. No one else said anything either.

"Then say goodbye to Shelter Rock, everyone," Xekrai went on. "Let's get going!"

And with that, the group set off together down the southern path, their energy restored and excited to be on their way. Xekrai was in the front, looking confident as ever as the others chatted happily around him.

Saetwo was in the very back. As the others were leaving, she paused for a moment and looked over her shoulder, back the way they had come, as though she were expecting to see someone there.

"Goodbye, Echae. I'll miss you."

And she followed after the group.


	11. Echae in Exile

Echae could hardly believe his bad luck. That Arno must have had some kind of upper body strength, because the troll's smack had sent him flying for miles and miles. He had been so terrified that he had lost track of the time he had been in the air, but when he finally started to come down he was sure he would be killed from the impact. He had let out one long, blood-curdling scream as he fell down, down, down, faster and faster and faster. . . .

And landed, perfectly softly, in the canopy of a tree.

For a very long moment, all he could do was lay there, panting, hardly daring to move. He had landed in a mass of leaves, which, naturally, hadn't done him any harm at all, but he still half-suspected he had broken something and just didn't know it yet. After experimentally flexing around for a while, he decided that, by some miracle, he was unharmed, besides being scratched up a little by the twigs.

"Well, this will make an interesting story."

He decided the next thing to do would be to get out of the tree, so he very slowly and cautiously clambered down to the trunk and slid the rest of the way down, landing on the ground with a dull thud. Then he started looking around.

"No way."

He recognized this place. He was standing right on top of the first cliff they had had to ascend. Below and away he could see the beach, with their boat still resting on it, and farther out, the ocean. He was right back where they had started.

"I don't believe this. I just don't – "

He broke off as he suddenly noticed something on the beach that he hadn't seen before. For an instant he thought he must be imagining things. . . but no, it was really there.

It was a second boat.

Echae's heart started hammering. Could it be?

"_Hey!_" came an impatient voice. "Somebody wanna _help _me here?!"

Echae raced to the edge of the cliff and peered over.

Scaling the narrow path that led up the cliff, in the exact same way he and the others had done, were sixteen more Zoombinis. And the one in the very front, who had just spoken, was someone Echae had never expected to see again. It was Tyscene!

"Guys, look! It's Echae!" exclaimed someone farther back.

"I can't believe it!" Echae cried, laughing in joy. "You guys actually made it!"

"Very observant, Echae," Tyscene snapped. "Now would you mind giving us a hand? This isn't as easy as it looks!"

"Oh, I know. I had to do the same – "

He stopped himself as he caught sight of a flying Zoombini racing up effortlessly past the others, finally pulling up right in front of him. If Echae had had a mouth, it would have dropped wide open.

"_Uloobu?!_"

"Hi, Echae! Bet you didn't expect to see me!"

". . .No, I didn't! But as long as you're here, how about helping me with these guys?"

After a few tension-filled minutes, Echae and Uloobu had managed to hoist all of the other Zoombinis safely up onto the grass.

"Well, _that _was unpleasant," Tyscene muttered, shaking her hair out of her face. "You sure you couldn't have been more clumsy, Echae? I wasn't as close to _falling _as I would have liked!"

"Geez, Tyscene, why are you in such a bad mood?"

"I'll _tell _you why!" she snarled. "_My idiot brother left me behind!!_"

"Well, he didn't have much of a choice," Echae said lamely. "We kind of had to get out of there fast and. . . wait a sec! How did you guys escape?"

"The obvious way. With a _boat_."

"No, I mean, how did you get past the Bloats? After that first escape, didn't they do anything to make sure nobody else got away?"

"Oh, sure," said Uloobu. "Besides giving us a _very _stern talking-to, they put guards all up and down the beach. In the watchtowers too. But I'll tell you, it's nothing a few well-aimed rocks to the head couldn't take care of."

Echae broke into a grin. "You didn't."

"I hope they all have health insurance," said a blue-nosed Zoombini, causing everyone except Tyscene to laugh.

"Yeah, yeah, real hilarious," she grumbled. "Now, since no one else is going to bring this up, just _what _are we supposed to do now?"

Echae just then remembered his old group. "Oh! We can go after the other guys! It'll probably take us a few days to catch up, but we can make it if we hurry! I know the way."

"Say, Echae, what are you doing here by yourself anyway?" asked a Zoombini with a flattop. "Shouldn't you be with the other guys?"

"Yeah, about that," Echae muttered glumly. "I kind of had a run-in with a Pizza Troll."

"A _what?_" asked about five people at once.

"Well, I'll explain it on the way. We should probably get going before they get too far ahead."

Not even Tyscene could think of an objection to that, and so they were off.

-----

A few hours later they arrived back at the Allergic Cliffs. Echae was surprised to find that all the pegs had been placed back into the ground, as if he and the others had never been there. It didn't really matter, though, since he remembered the rules perfectly.

"Echae. . . do those cliffs have _faces?_" Uloobu asked fearfully, with the others showing similar signs of horror. Echae couldn't help but laugh at their reaction.

"Don't worry, guys. They can't hurt you, but they can sneeze. You just have to make sure you don't go over the one that's allergic to you."

"How do we know _that?_" asked Tyscene.

"_I _know. Just watch me."

He started to set off confidently across the left bridge – when, to his horror, the cliff across from him started to sniffle. He froze, not daring to believe it, and so was unprepared when the cliff's monstrous sneeze sent him tumbling back, along with the familiar effect of flinging one of the pegs out of its hole and far below.

"Yeah, you know all right," Tyscene scoffed.

"But that's _impossible!_" Echae objected. "I remember exactly what – unless – "

He turned back to the group and found a Zoombini with sunglasses. "You. Try going across this bridge."

"Do I _have _to?" she asked, obviously terrified.

"_Please?_ This is important."

Reluctantly, she skated up to the bridge and timidly set one foot on it – when the cliff gave a loud, threatening sniff. She quickly jerked her foot back and skated away as fast as she could.

"I can't believe it. They _changed their allergies_."

"What are you talking about, Echae?" Tyscene demanded.

"The first time we went across, I had to go across _this _bridge, because the other one was allergic to me. But now, _this _one is allergic to me. They must have completely changed their rules!"

"Now, wait just a minute! How the heck can a _cliff _be allergic?!"

"I don't know. But you just saw it. And this means we're going to have to figure the rules out all over again."

Although it was difficult, and it took quite a toll on his nerves, Echae was eventually able to determine what the cliffs were now allergic to in the same way that Saetwo had. Once again, everyone made it across safely, and he subsequently found himself surrounded by a group of very grateful Zoombinis.

"That was _awesome_, Echae!"

"You did it!"

"You're so smart!"

"It was nothing, really," he said sheepishly. "I just don't understand why their allergies would just up and change like that. But then again, I don't get anything about this place."

-----

For the next several days, Echae loyally led the others along the path he had previously followed, telling them all about his previous adventures with the Cave Guards and the Pizza Trolls as they listened in fascination. Although he missed his old friends more and more with each passing day, he was glad to still be part of a group. It hardly felt like he had left, since Uloobu was just as friendly as Saetwo, and Tyscene was just as overbearing as her brother.

Echae could tell that Tyscene was used to being in charge, and it was driving her crazy that he was the de facto leader. Since she couldn't push the whole group around like she wanted, she settled for pushing around Uloobu. Echae noticed several times when she went out of her way to give him a violent shove or call him names. She thought of every reason she could to pick on him, and worse, none of the others tried to stop her.

Echae had always been too annoyed at Uloobu to pity him very much, but suddenly, he found himself feeling a great deal of sympathy toward the abused Zoombini.

One afternoon, Echae and the others found themselves approaching a very familiar-looking series of caves, along with four very familiar-looking boulders.

"Well, look who's here!" Crystal exclaimed as they came up.

"Hi, everyone," Echae said pleasantly, ignoring the fact that the other Zoombinis were cowering nervously together. "I brought some more friends."

"You neglected to mention that there would be _more _of you," Onyx remarked in irritation.

"Echae, those guys aren't _dangerous_, are they?" asked a droopy-eyed Zoombini.

"Don't be silly. I told you all about them, remember? They just like to mess with your head."

The Cave Guards watched in anticipation as he headed over and started skating up the path into the lower left cave. Suddenly, Crystal leapt into the air and slammed down onto his slab, and once again, Echae found himself tumbling back to where he had started.

"Oh, _come on_," he moaned as he stood back up. "Don't tell me you guys changed your rules too!"

"Well, what do you want? We're _rocks!_" said Igno. "We have nothing to do all day except tell stupid jokes and come up with rules!"

"Well, fine. We'll just do this the hard way."

About fifteen minutes later, Echae had figured out the new rules and everyone had been successfully sorted into the correct cave. Once again, the Cave Guards were very congenial in conceding victory to the Zoombinis, making it hard for Echae to be angry at them.

"You are a very smart little one," Ferrous remarked to him. "Just as smart as your leader, I would say."

"Not that _that's_ saying much," Igno muttered.

Echae snickered. "I hear you."

As the Zoombinis filed out of the caves and back onto the path, Tyscene wheeled her way up to the front of the line, shoving Uloobu out of the way in the process.

"One side, one-eye!"

"Tyscene!" Uloobu exclaimed. "_You've _only got one eye!"

"Besides the point entirely! Now move it or lose it!"

As she rolled on ahead of the group, Echae sighed and fell back until he was skating alongside Uloobu.

"Sorry you have to go through this, Uloobu," he said.

"Oh, it's okay," Uloobu replied, although from his tone of voice it obviously wasn't. "She's no worse than Xekrai."

"I feel so bad for you. You have to put up with all this, and there's no good reason for it. You're such a nice guy, and you deserve more respect."

Uloobu stared at him with what looked like gratitude.

"That's the nicest thing anybody's ever said to me," he said softly. "Echae, you're so great. You're not afraid of Xekrai or Tyscene. And you're a lot nicer to me than Saetwo."

"Well, don't be too hard on her. She's been having a hard time."

"What do you mean? Did something happen to her?"

Stunned, Echae was about to ask Uloobu how he could possibly have forgotten – and then he remembered. Uloobu hadn't been there. He didn't know.

"Uloobu. . . " he said carefully, "Sae's mom died."

The flying Zoombini, as well as everyone within hearing range, stopped dead.

"Oh my gosh. . . " Uloobu breathed. "_How?_"

"How do you think? The Bloats did it."

For a long time, no one said anything. But the expressions on everyone's faces revealed exactly what they were thinking.

"That's awful," said Uloobu. "I hope we find Saetwo so I can tell her how sorry I am."

Echae gave an ironic smile. "Thanks, Uloobu. I think she'd appreciate that."

-----

As the days went by and they continued to travel, Echae became more and more nervous. They were drawing ever closer to what he knew was waiting for them. Or rather, _who _was waiting.

Finally, one fateful morning, the group arrived at the clearing beneath the cliffs that held the pizza machine. Much to Echae's consternation, Arno, Willomaen, and Shyler were all still there.

"Are those the Pizza Trolls?" Tyscene muttered. "They don't look so tough."

When Echae didn't answer, she glanced at him. "Echae?"

"I can't do this," he stammered. "I'm too scared."

"Well, you _have _to. You're the only one who knows what they want."

"Okay, but Uloobu will have to help me. He's the only one who can reach the buttons."

He paused for one final moment, took a deep breath, and skated into the clearing, the others following him.

Arno took one look at them and grew very irritated indeed. "_You _guys again?! What are you doing back here?"

"Hooray! They can make us more pizzas!" Shyler cheered at the sight of Uloobu.

"If that's what you want, then we will," Echae said graciously, trying to hide his ever-increasing terror. "Am I safe to assume that you all have different topping preferences now?"

"Well, you'll just have to figure that out yourself, won't you?" Willomaen remarked, folding her arms. Echae rolled his eyes; they still weren't going to reveal anything.

"You'll be fine, Echae," Uloobu assured him. "You're smart. You can do anything."

"We'll see about that."

With Uloobu's help, Echae set to work. Doing exactly as he and Saetwo had done, he sent pizza after pizza out to the hungry trolls, and once again, Shyler and Willomaen were quickly satiated. When only Arno was left, and growing angrier by the second, Echae was almost too scared to move.

"Okay, Echae, we're still missing one ingredient from Arno's pizza," said Uloobu. "Is it peppers or mushrooms?"

Echae, who had not been there when Xekrai had revealed the secret behind the pizzas, had no idea.

"I don't know."

"Well, you'll have to guess."

Echae winced. It was as if he were reliving that same horrible day all over again. If Saetwo hadn't guessed right, how could he?

"I'm _waiting!_" Arno bellowed.

"All right, _fine!_" Echae cried. "Uloobu, give him mushrooms."

As he skated the pizza over to Arno, Echae could see that the troll was more than ready to send him flying again. In fact, if this pizza was the wrong one, that was exactly what was going to happen. He could tell.

Too afraid to look, Echae slid the pizza next to Arno and squeezed his eyes shut, ready for what would happen.

For a moment there was deafening silence. No one spoke.

Finally Arno exhaled happily and gushed out, "Thank you, _thank _you!"

He grabbed his pizza and climbed back onto his rock. "One, two, _three!_" he shouted, and all three Pizza Trolls began messily wolfing down their lunches.

After a moment of incredulity, all the Zoombinis burst out cheering and started dancing gleefully around. All except Echae. He had collapsed in a dead faint.

-----

"It was disgusting. I've never seen anybody with such bad eating habits," Uloobu related to Echae as they approached Shelter Rock. "But you did it, Echae! You should be so happy – "

He stopped as he noticed where they were.

"Hey, what is this place?" Echae wondered.

"It looks like some kind of rest stop," said Uloobu.

"No! _Really?_" Tyscene sneered at him. "Of course it's a rest stop, you idiot. Why don't you not say anything unless it's something _useful_."

Uloobu lowered his eye to the ground, looking very ashamed. Echae hardly had time to worry about him, though. A more important matter was on his mind.

"Does it look like anybody else was here?" he asked Tyscene. "Like, the other group? Were they here?"

"I think they were," remarked a Zoombini with a spring, who was crouched in front of the fire pit. "Look at this! The fire's still burning. They must have forgotten to put it out. But that means they probably left less than an hour ago."

"We _just missed them_," Echae moaned hopelessly. He had been so close to finding Saetwo again, and now it was too late. The road split off in two up ahead, and she could have gone either way.

"Well, let's not stay here long," said Tyscene. "A night at the most. After all, we've got places to be."

"Which way are we going to go?" Echae wondered.

"I vote we go north. The road looks a lot easier to travel. I'm sure the other guys would want to be taking it easy."

The other Zoombinis nodded in consent.

"North it is, then," Echae agreed, praying that was indeed where Saetwo was. "First thing in the morning."

-----

That night, Echae was curled up in one of the alcoves with the others when a familiar buzzing sound broke the peaceful silence. It was the sound of Uloobu's propeller.

Opening his eyes, he squinted into the darkness and could just make out the form of Uloobu hovering in front of the fork in the road.

"Uloobu!" Echae hissed as he jumped out and skated up to him. "What are you doing?"

"I'm glad you're here, Echae," Uloobu said without looking at him. "I wanted to tell you what a great friend you are before I leave."

"Leave?! Where are you going?"

"I'm going south. Tyscene said she's going north, and I'm not going anywhere she's going."

"Uloobu, don't be stupid! The whole _group's _going north! You'll be all by yourself!"

"I don't care. I can't take it anymore, Echae. Tyscene's ruining my life. And you're the only one who really likes me. I can tell everyone will be happier if I just leave."

"_I _won't!" Echae objected. "I want you to stay with us!"

"Well, sorry, Echae. I just can't."

Echae couldn't believe what was happening. Without Saetwo around, Uloobu had somehow become his closest friend during this leg of the journey. And now he was leaving too?

"Look, I'll talk to Tyscene for you. I'll get her to stop. Just don't do this! You're making a huge mistake! If something happens to you, how will we find out?"

It was only now that Uloobu turned to face him.

"Echae, I thought you knew me better. Maybe I only have one eye, and maybe I can't fly very well, but _I can take care of myself_. I don't need you worrying about me. I'll be fine."

Echae was silent.

"If you do see Saetwo again, tell her I said hi."

"Uloobu. . . . "

"You can't change my mind, Echae."

Echae sighed in defeat. "No. I obviously can't." He glanced back at the boulder to make sure no one else had woken up, then looked back at Uloobu. "Just promise me you'll be careful."

"I will. Bye, Echae. Thanks for being my friend. Maybe we'll see each other again."

And with that, Uloobu turned away and flew off down the southern path. Echae was only able to watch after him for a few seconds before he was swallowed up by the darkness.

"Bye, Uloobu," Echae said, mostly to himself.

After standing alone for a few minutes, he finally remembered how tired he was, and skated back to the boulder, ready to go to sleep. Tomorrow, he felt, would be a very important day.

-----

**A/N: **Woo! Long chapter! But you guys were so patient, you deserve it! Keep watching for Chapter 12 – it's gonna be exciting!


	12. Flushing Out the Fleens

Although the first day traveling along the southern path was uneventful enough, the calmness couldn't last. The next morning the trees that lined the path were growing larger and larger and becoming closer and closer together, until finally the group was trekking through an impenetrable forest.

"Well, this is just great," Xekrai complained around midday, although it was hard to say exactly what time it was, as the trees were blocking out the sun. "Whose idea was it to go this way again?"

"_Yours_," said Saetwo and about five others.

"That's ridiculous. I don't make mistakes."

"Well, it's not so bad," Saetwo remarked, glancing around at the scenery that surrounded them from all sides. "Just so long as nothing dangerous lives in here."

No sooner had she spoken those words, however, than a clump of bushes behind the group began to tremble and shake and a low moan escaped from within them. Everyone whipped around and stared in fright.

"Way to jinx us, Saetwo," Conneda hissed.

"_Ohhhh-uhhhh_," groaned the bushes.

"Maybe it's harmless," Saetwo murmured as she and the others slowly moved backward.

"And maybe it wants to suck out our brains," Xekrai shot back. "Care to take a chance?"

The moaning was getting louder.

"On the count of three, we jump in and attack it," Xekrai whispered. "Everybody got it?"

The others nodded.

"One. . . two – "

The monster came staggering out of the bushes.

"I found you guys! I can't believe I – _OW!!_" He was cut off as a large rock hit him in the head.

"Conneda, you idiot!" Saetwo exclaimed to the perpetrator. "It's Uloobu!"

"I knew that," Conneda said quickly.

"What is _he _doing here?" Xekrai asked, looking none too happy.

Saetwo rushed over to where Uloobu was sprawled on the forest floor. "Uloobu, is that really you?" she asked. "Are you okay? We didn't know who you were!"

But Uloobu didn't look offended at all. "I actually _found _all of you!" he cheered as he jumped back into the air. "I thought I'd never catch up!"

"Why were you _moaning?_"

"I'm tired! I haven't gotten any sleep since I've been following you guys!"

"You've been following – ? Uloobu, did you come here all by yourself?"

"Oh, no. I came here with another group. But I left them back at Shelter Rock because. . . well, they didn't want me."

"What makes you think _we _want you?" said Xekrai. Several of the others nodded in firm agreement, while an equal amount gave Xekrai an annoyed look.

"Cut him some slack, Xekrai," said somebody. "We can't just _not _let him come with us."

"Please, Xekrai?" said Uloobu. "I had to leave the other group because of your dumb sister."

"Tyscene's here?" Xekrai looked genuinely surprised. "Wow, I didn't think she'd be smart enough to know how to get on the boat."

"Well, she's here. She and the other guys went north. Oh! And so did Echae."

The effect on Saetwo was instantaneous. "You saw Echae?!" she cried. "Is he okay? Is he mad at me? What did he say?"

"Geez, relax, Saetwo. He's fine. But he's with the other group now. They went the other way."

Saetwo looked completely crestfallen. After a moment of silence she glanced imploringly at Xekrai.

"There's no chance we could. . . you know. . . backtrack and go the other way?"

"Get a life, Saetwo. We're not wasting a whole day just so you can go beg Echae's forgiveness."

"But we don't know if the two paths ever meet up! We might never see the other guys again!"

"Never seeing Echae or my sister again? Hmm. . . I think I'll live. Now let's go."

Xekrai seemed to have forgotten about Uloobu, so as the group set off through the forest again, the latter quietly fell in to the back of the line and received no objection.

"_I'm _glad you're here, Uloobu," Saetwo reassured him. And it was the truth. She had no idea why – maybe it was just from knowing that Echae was all right – but having Uloobu with her was making her surprisingly happy.

-----

As the seemingly endless afternoon wore on, the journey began to take its toll on the group. Everyone was becoming tired and churlish, even Uloobu, who had never lashed out at anyone before. The path continued to wind aimlessly through the forest, and there was no sign they would be exiting it anytime soon.

Saetwo had been drowsily flying along when suddenly she jerked to a stop.

"Did you guys hear something?"

Everyone else stopped and listened cautiously.

"Like what?" asked Touli.

"I could've sworn I heard. . . laughing."

"I heard it too," Uloobu whimpered.

Everyone stood silently, but for a long moment there was nothing. Saetwo was about to dismiss it as a figment of her imagination when, out of nowhere, she heard it again. It was definitely someone laughing, and not kindly. And it was from close by.

The Zoombinis instictively huddled together.

"What could it be?" Uloobu asked in fear. Now there were multiple voices coming from all directions, all laughing sinisterly.

"They sound really nasty," Saetwo whispered. "They almost sound like – "

The forest exploded around them. At least that was how the Zoombinis perceived it, as the bushes surrounding them were ripped apart as a series of yellow blurs came bursting out of them. The Zoombinis all cried out at once as their attackers, cackling evilly all the while, surrounded them on all sides and created an impermeable circle.

"FLEENS!!" Saetwo screamed.

-----

No one in the group was old enough to have seen a Fleen before, but they had all heard the stories. Many years ago, the Fleens had lived together with the Zoombinis, and all of them together had run their successful trading business. However, the Fleens eventually became lazy and greedy, manipulating and cheating the Zoombinis, stealing their profits and nearly ruining their business. The Zoombinis had had no choice but to kick the Fleens off the island, and they had never been seen again. No one had ever figured out where they had gone. That question, of course, was now answered.

"What's _this?_" sneered one of them. "Zoombinis? On _our _island? We'll have to take care of this."

Now that she was seeing them for the first time, Saetwo realized that the Fleens were actually a lot like Zoombinis. Although they were much bigger, and lanky and yellow instead of round and blue, they too had no arms or mouth, and there were only a few variants among their hair, eyes, noses, and feet. The one who had just addressed them had two yellow braids under a viking helmet, a peach-colored nose, knee-high pink boots, and was glaring at them with not one, not two, but _three _eyes.

"Uh. . . we can explain," Xekrai stammered, and Saetwo thought it was the first time she had ever heard him completely without confidence.

"No need," growled a second Fleen. His head was covered by a red bandana and he had a dirty yellow nose. In place of his feet were the wheels from a tank, and it looked as though he had smeared mascara all over his eyes. "You're trespassing. That's all we need to know."

"But it was an accident!" Touli cried.

"Yeah," snickered a third Fleen, "and now you're about to have _another _accident."

Just as the Fleens were getting ready to inflict said accident on the helpless Zoombinis, a loud, clear voice rang out from behind them.

"What's going on here?!"

Every Fleen stopped what they were doing as terrified looks crossed their faces. The circle parted and, accompanied by the sound of an engine burning, a solitary figure flew up to them.

The Zoombinis were face to face with what must have been the most intimidating Fleen there had ever been. His hair was coiffed into a huge, purple, spiky mohawk, his eyes were hidden by a visor, his nose was dark gray, and his means of propulsion were two jetpak engines with flames blazing out of them whenever he moved.

"_Zoombinis?_" he remarked in incredulity. "Well, isn't this something. I must admit, when we sent those Bloats after you I didn't think you'd come _here_."

Saetwo's eyes bulged at the sound of that.

"That was _you?!_" Xekrai cried, completely furious. "Why you sick, twisted, underhanded – "

"Shaddup!" snapped one of the Fleens, giving him a powerful smack to the face. Xekrai had never fallen silent so quickly.

"They're feisty little ones," another one remarked to their apparent leader. "Whaddaya want we should do with 'em, Romelau?"

Saetwo hadn't thought she could receive a bigger shock, but here it was.

"Wait – _you're _Romelau?!" she exclaimed, her head reeling. "But – but I thought Romelau was a Bloat!"

"Well, then, you thought wrong, didn't you?" the leader of the Fleens replied. Even without a mouth, it was obvious there was a wicked grin on his face.

Saetwo had never been so confused, or so horrified. How could _this _be Romelau? The Romelau she knew had been on Zoombini Isle this whole time. He had nearly _killed _her –

And then she realized it. The only time she had actually heard Romelau's name being spoken was on board that ship, when the two Bloats had been talking about him – but they had never explicitly _said _who Romelau was. She had only assumed. . . .

"I'm so _stupid_," she muttered to herself.

"You're _all _pretty stupid, if you ask me," said Romelau – the actual one. "First you send us _here_, then we let those blockheads the Bloats know about your great little island, just to even the score out – and you get away from them by coming to the same place you sent us to?!"

"To be fair, our parents were the ones who got rid of you," Conneda offered weakly.

"And they didn't send you _here! _They had no idea where you went!" Saetwo added.

"Well, that doesn't really matter now. It's not every day a group of Zoombinis walks right into your hands, or lack thereof. Oh, revenge is sweet."

"Anyone got an idea?" Saetwo anxiously asked the others as the circle of Fleens closed in.

"I got a pretty good one," said Xekrai.

"What?"

"RUN!!"

-----

It was only by taking the Fleens completely by surprise that the Zoombinis managed to burst out of the circle and get away. Naturally, though, at the word from Romelau every Fleen present took off after them.

For what felt like forever the entire group fled through the forest, the Fleens always in hot pursuit as they bellowed threats at the top of their lungs. Several times a Zoombini tripped and barely managed to evade being captured, and poor Uloobu was lagging behind as always, flying around erratically as he attempted to keep up.

"We have to hide!" Saetwo shouted to Xekrai when they had finally gained some ground. "We can't outrun them for much longer!"

"Fine! Everybody get behind these bushes!"

Obediently, all sixteen Zoombinis threw themselves behind a massive clump of bushes that was large enough to obscure them all from view. All of them lay panting, not daring to speak, listening for a sign that the Fleens were coming. But there was nothing.

"Somebody go see what's going on," Xekrai whispered after a moment.

Taking it upon herself, Saetwo very slowly rose up and peered over the top of the bushes.

The Fleens were all gathered about twenty feet away, waiting for them. Most of them were standing on one of the ledges of a large knoll, but Romelau and two others were perched on top of an adjacent tree branch.

"Come on out, little Zoombinis," Romelau sang. "You can't get away."

Saetwo ducked back down. "We're in trouble," she concluded.

"Well, that does it," Xekrai declared. "I'm not gonna sit back here hiding until they get us. I have a bone to pick with these guys."

"Xekrai, _don't!_" several people whispered, but he ignored them all and stepped out of the bushes to face the Fleens.

"Come and get me, Romelau!" he shouted. "My dad's dead because of you!"

The Zoombinis peered out from behind the bushes to see what would happen. The Fleens laughed amongst themselves, and not Romelau, but the Fleen standing next to him, leapt off the tree branch and charged at Xekrai.

"Woah! Hey! Get away from me!" Xekrai cried as the Fleen chased him around and around the tree. Just as it looked like he would be caught, he got away by scrambling up the trunk and safely onto a branch opposite the one the Fleens were standing on. Unfortunately, his pursuer parked herself directly underneath him, effectively trapping Xekrai in the tree.

"What do you want with me?!" he shouted down at her. "Is your boss too scared to take me on?"

"We have to help him!" Uloobu fretted from behind the bush. "Saetwo, how many of them are there?"

Saetwo did a quick count. "Sixteen," she replied grimly. "One for each of us."

"We can't _all_ go out there," said Conneda. "I can handle this."

No sooner had he rolled out into the open than another Fleen eyed him sinisterly and jumped off the hill.

"AAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Conneda screamed as the Fleen chased him up the tree, right next to Xekrai.

"Nice going, genius," Xekrai grumbled.

"Why is only one going after them at a time?" Uloobu wondered.

"I don't know," said Saetwo. "But Uloobu, look!" She nudged him and gestured at something hanging from the branch that the Fleens were standing on.

"There's a beehive on that tree branch! If we can just get the other Fleens to jump off of it, it might shake it up and the bees will come out! Then we can get away!"

"But we'll have to figure out which Fleen wants each one of _us_."

As Uloobu spoke, Saetwo was staring intently at all the different Fleens, then looking back at the Zoombinis behind her. All the while she was thinking back to the Allergic Cliffs and the Cave Guards. After a moment her eyes lit up.

"And I think I know how."

She called up Touli and two other Zoombinis. "You guys all need to go out there."

All three of them looked horrified. "_What? _Why us?!" Touli protested.

"You'll see. I promise, I know what I'm doing. Just go out there, please? You'll be safe once you make it to the tree."

The three of them glanced uneasily at each other, but finally Touli broke the ice.

"Okay, but only because you usually figure this stuff out, Saetwo. If anyone else asked us I wouldn't do it."

She ever so cautiously bounced out from the bushes and gestured for the others to follow.

All at once, three Fleens started laughing maniacally and jumped down, each one targeting a different Zoombini. Two of them leapt off the hill, but the one chasing after Touli jumped off the tree branch. As he did, the branch, as well as the beehive, shook dangerously.

For several chaotic moments all six of them were scampering madly around the tree, but before long all three Zoombinis were safely cowering on the opposite branch.

"Saetwo, what was _that _all about?!" Uloobu exclaimed.

"Have a look, Uloobu. What do Touli and the other guys all have in common?"

"They all have green noses?"

"Right. They're the _only _ones who have green noses. Now look at the Fleens. What do they have in common?"

"They all have three eyes."

"Uloobu, there really is one for each of us! They're matched up with us by their features! Those guys are the only ones with three eyes, which means they must each go with somebody with a green nose! I knew one of those guys would get that Fleen off the tree branch."

"Great. Now we just have to worry about the big guy," Uloobu said with a gulp as he gazed up at Romelau, still perched high up on the branch and glaring down at them.

"Whatever you're planning, it won't work!" he shouted at them. "There's no getting away from us! We've waited too long for this!"

"So which one of us is Romelau going to go after?" Saetwo pondered.

"Uh. . . Saetwo?"

Saetwo turned to Uloobu to find he had gone deathly pale.

"Saetwo, only he and one other Fleen over there have his crazy purple mohawk. And you and I. . . we're the only two who've got propellers." He looked at her fearfully. "It's gonna be one of us."

Saetwo looked back out and, after a moment of studying, realized with a jolt that he was right.

"We can't both go out there," she said. "There's not enough room left on the branch for both of us."

"I'll go first," Uloobu offered with uncharacteristic bravery. "If Romelau doesn't go after me, we'll know who he does want."

"Uloobu, no! It's too dangerous!"

"I don't care. I'm doing it anyway." He started to fly out, then glanced back at her. "Good luck, Saetwo. I know you'll teach him a lesson."

He flew out of the bushes, and after a heart-pounding moment, one Fleen jumped down and leapt directly at him – but it wasn't Romelau.

Saetwo's heart sank. That meant Romelau, the feared leader of all the Fleens, was waiting just for _her_.

"Saetwo, you can't go out there!" someone whispered.

"He'll get you for sure!" someone else agreed. "You can't fit on the branch!"

"If my plan works, I won't need to get on the branch," she whispered back, her eyes never leaving the precariously hanging beehive.

She turned back to the others. "If he _does _get me, you guys need to get out of here as fast as you can. Don't worry about me. I'll be okay."

The group slowly nodded.

Saetwo turned around, pausing for one second longer, and took a deep breath. "Here goes nothing."

And she flew out into the open.

"_There_ you are!" Romelau declared in triumph.

The events that followed happened almost too quickly for Saetwo to process. All she was fully aware of was Romelau dive-bombing her from atop the tree branch, flying directly at her, flames shrieking from his engines. She barely got out of the way in time, and for one frenzied second she flew blindly around the tree, not knowing what to do, hearing her friends' panicked shouts coming from all around, knowing that Romelau was right behind her –

Suddenly there was a buzzing sound. Everyone, Zoombini and Fleen alike, stopped what they were doing and turned to face the source of the noise.

The beehive was trembling violently, and from inside of it was a low, angry buzz that was getting louder by the second.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!" Romelau screamed.

A swarm of bees came pouring out of the hive, causing a mass frenzy. The Fleens began running, rolling, or flying around in all directions, screaming as they were stung again and again. The six Zoombinis in the tree managed to get down and scamper back behind the bush just before the bees could get to them.

"Let's get out of here!" Xekrai cried out, and all the Zoombinis took off after him as fast as they could.

"_You'll all pay for this!!_" Romelau's thunderous roar came from behind them, although nearly drowned out by the droning of the bees and the cries of the other Fleens. "We'll be back! You can't get away! Revenge _will _be ours!!"

-----

A few minutes later, after they were too exhausted to run any farther, the Zoombinis slowly came to a stop in another part of the forest. For a few moments they stood in complete silence, glancing at one another. Then finally, all of them, even Xekrai, burst out laughing at the same time.

"I can't believe it!" said Conneda, absolutely cracking up. "I can't believe that just happened!"

"Saetwo and Uloobu did it!" Touli cheered. "They beat the Fleens! That'll teach them never to mess with _us!_"

"I must admit," Xekrai sighed, "you guys were pretty good."

"Really?" Saetwo said brightly. "So how about letting _us _be the leaders now?"

Any look of graciousness that Xekrai had instantly disappeared.

"_What? _Let _you _be leaders?! Over my dead body!! Like I'd even consider that for a second! I'm the only leader this group will _ever _have! And that is – "

"Hey, Xekrai," said Uloobu, "there's a bee behind you."

"What? No there's – OW!!"

For the next several minutes, all the Zoombinis stood back and watched as Xekrai ran around in circles, trying unsuccessfully to get away from the lone bee that was pursuing him. Saetwo laughed along with the others, feeling happier than she had in a long time.


	13. Ferry, Ferry, Quite Contrary

**A/N:** And now, for no particular reason, it's time for a reader poll!!! (large audience starts cheering insanely)

I'm really curious to know, who is your favorite character so far? I personally like the way all of them have been turning out, but I want to know what all my readers think, just as a reference. Replies (and reviews) are very much appreciated.

And now without further adieu, Chapter 13!

-----

"Oh, perfect," muttered Tyscene. "Hey Echae, come up here a sec."

"What is it this time?" Echae sighed as he skated up alongside her. They had set off very early that morning and he was still tired, as well as annoyed that nobody else seemed to care that Uloobu was gone.

"You're the genius. Can Zoombinis swim?"

Echae stared at her. "Tyscene, why would _I_ know that better than anyone else? And anyway, why do you ask?"

"'Cause we're gonna have to."

"What do you – oh, my gosh."

Echae only just then realized that they were standing at the edge of a small cliff, and about ten feet below them was the most enormous river he had ever seen. The water was fairly calm, but judging by the dark blue color, it was certainly not a safe depth for any of them. Not only that, it must have been at least a mile wide, as Echae couldn't even see to the other side, only a deep blue expanse that faded in the distance.

"What's going on?" someone asked as the rest of the group gathered behind Echae and Tyscene.

"Dead end," Tyscene replied simply. "I dunno about you guys, but I don't really feel like going in there. We're gonna have to go around."

"Uhh, miss Tyscene, sir? I mean, ma'am?" came a sycophantic voice. "How are we gonna do that?"

"Yeah, I mean, aren't rivers really _long?_"

Tyscene squeezed her eye shut in frustration. "_Ugh! _Do you two _ever _shut up?!"

Echae was quite as annoyed as Tyscene. Among the members of their group were none other than Xekrai's old cronies, Iake and Weiswyo, and in the absence of their leader they were obviously looking for someone else to latch onto.

"Sorry. . . we're just saying," Weiswyo said innocently.

"Well, from now on, don't say anything unless it's useful. That oughta keep you quiet for a few weeks."

"They _do _have a point, Tyscene," Echae said as the group turned around and started going back the way they had come. "Judging from the size of that thing, it'd take us weeks or even _months _to go all the way around. I'm sure it'd be easier just to cross it."

"Well, do you have any ideas about how to do that, oh great all-knowing Echae?" Tyscene replied hotly. "Are you hiding any scuba gear? Or a _bridge?_"

Echae narrowed his eyes at her. "Look, I'm just saying – "

"And _I'm _just saying that your genius little plan isn't going to work! There's no way across!"

"Uh, miss Tyscene? . . .Is this a bad time?" Iake called out timidly. Unlike the others, he had not moved from the edge of the cliff seemed to be gazing out at something far off to their left.

Tyscene quickly rounded on him. "What did I just tell you about talking to me?! Is this gonna be useful?"

"Uh. . . yeah, pretty useful. I see a boat."

-----

The boat, as it turned out, was nothing more than a large wooden raft, although it was certainly big enough to hold all of them. It was resting nearly a mile upstream of where the Zoombinis had previously been, leaving them all thoroughly exhausted by the time they finally approached it.

"This place is pretty nice," Echae panted as he looked around; they had reached a shallow part of the river with a shoreline covered with reeds and lily pads, making it almost like a marsh. "Nice job, Iake. Now let's just hope that guy gives us a ride."

Echae was referring to the apparent conductor of the makeshift ferryboat. He was a very tall, skinny creature with a green skin tone that was unnervingly similar to the Bloats', and he was wearing a very baggy pair of overalls of a nearly identical color. As the group cautiously clambered onto a nearby wooden dock and came up to him, they saw that he was leaning soundly against his elongated oar, fast asleep.

"Wake him up, Echae," Tyscene whispered.

Deciding not to argue with Tyscene, Echae slowly and silently leaned out from the edge of the dock, giving the conductor the faintest nudge. . . .

"AHH!! HOO-WAH!!" the conductor shouted, jumping at least a foot in the air as he jolted awake. He immediately started swinging his oar blindly around until he copped Echae upside the head and sent him flying into the river.

"Wha – whazza – " He turned to face the Zoombinis and seemed to understand what was going on. "Oh, I am _terribly_ sorry. My apologies. I was havin' a nightmare about bunnies – evil, evil bunnies. . . is your friend all right?"

Echae emerged from the water several feet away. "Don't worry about it," he replied as he shook his sopping wet hair out of his face. "I've had worse. A lot worse."

"Sorry if we bothered you," Tyscene spoke up. "It's just, we sort of need a ride across the river."

The conductor immediately straightened up at the sound of that. "Well, you all come to the right place! Welcome to da boat!" he said cheerily. "I will be your navigator today. You may call me Captain Cajun."

Echae couldn't surpress a smile. The Captain was named very aptly, as he was speaking with a thick Southern accent.

A thought suddenly occurred to him. "Uh, Mister Cajun, sir," he ventured, "you haven't seen another group come this way, have you? I mean, more people that look like us?"

Captain Cajun raised an eyebrow at him. "Ahhhh. . . no," was his reply. "Ah'm most certain I would remember seeing _more _of you."

"Great," Echae sighed. "I guess the other guys went south after all. How are we gonna find them now?"

The Captain had turned away to adjust something on the raft, but upon hearing Echae's remark he whipped back around to stare at him.

"Many pardons, son, but did you just say. . . your friends went _south?_"

"Uh, yeah. Why?"

The Captain shook his head in pity. "Y'all aren't from around here, are you?"

"_Why?_" Echae repeated. "What's so bad about going south?"

"Oh, _nothing_. Just an entire forest full of _Fleens _is all!"

Every Zoombini present gasped or cried out loud.

"_You mean Sae and the other guys are being ambushed by Fleens as we speak?!?_" Echae screamed.

"Echae, you _idiot!_" Tyscene fumed at him, looking dangerously angry. "You never said there were _Fleens _here!!"

"I didn't know! . . .I mean, Arno mentioned it once, just for a sec, but I never – "

Within seconds, all the Zoombinis were arguing frantically amongst themselves. Captain Cajun just stared at them, apparently frightened at what he had caused.

"Now, wait here just a moment! Calm down, everyone!"

Echae and the others ignored him as the shouting continued.

"_SHUT UP!!!_"

Everyone stopped talking abruptly.

"Sorry about that," the Captain said impatiently. "Now, it's true that there are Fleens living in the forest to the south, most certainly. However, I do believe you are all overreacting just a little. As long as your friends have the wisdom to stay out of their way, everything will be fine."

"You don't understand," Echae said helplessly. "We have. . . a history with the Fleens."

He took a minute to briefly explain the backstory of the Zoombinis and the Fleens, as related to him in years past by the adults.

". . .And _apparently_, after our parents kicked them off, they all came here," he concluded. "Pretty miserable luck for us."

The Captain was stroking his chin. "Well, that _is _most unfortunate," he remarked. "But I'm afraid there is nothing within my capabilities that I may do for your fellow blue. . . uh. . . fellows."

"Well then we've got to go back and warn them ourselves!" Echae exclaimed and spun around, but Tyscene was standing in his way.

"Echae, it's no use," she said with a shake of her head. "They've been traveling since yesterday. If something's happened to them, we're way too late to do anything about it."

"But what about the other guys?" Echae blurted out. "What about your _brother?_" He started blinking back frightened tears. "What about Sae?"

All the other Zoombinis were morosely lowering their heads, slowly making the grim realization that their friends would probably never come back out of the forest.

"Well, who knows, Echae." Weiswyo was attempting to be helpful. "Maybe they got away from the Fleens after all. Maybe they outsmarted them."

"Not if Xekrai was in charge, they didn't," Tyscene muttered.

"_Excuse _me?" Captain Cajun abruptly cut in. "I assure you all that you have my deepest condolonces, but I must inquire after whether or not y'all will be requirin' my services?"

Tyscene quickly took charge. "Of course we will. There's no point in going back."

"I suppose not," Echae acquiesced.

"Well then, hurry yourselves up and find yo' seat!" the Captain exclaimed, making a welcoming gesture toward the raft.

"Don't mind if I do!" Iake replied, bouncing on board without a second thought. Echae and the others followed after him.

The seats they would be using, which were nothing more than small wooden stools, were arranged into four rows with the second and fourth slightly farther to the right than the first and third. Surrounding them, and taking up most of the space on the raft, were all manner of barrels, crates, and wrapped packages. There was even a basket of fish.

"What's all this stuff?" Echae asked.

"Why that, son, is my merchandise," the Captain replied with an air of importance. "It's how I make a living; selling things all up an' down this here river."

"Kinda like we used to do!" Weiswyo piped up, looking excited.

"Very astute of you, Iake," Tyscene said flatly.

"I'm Weiswyo."

"Whatever."

Echae had just found what looked to be the most comfortable of all the seats and was about to sit down, when at the last minute he froze. His experiences on this continent had taught him that _nothing _here was as easy or straightforward as it should be.

"Uh, Mister Cajun. . . is there any certain, you know. . . _order _you want us to sit in? Anything like that?"

The Captain just shrugged. "Sit wherever you want to, I don't really ca'e."

"Really?" Weiswyo brightened up visibly at the sound of that. "No stupid rules or anything? _Awesome!_" He and Iake high-fived, or as close as Zoombinis can come to doing it, before flopping down side by side on two of the stools.

The Captain looked appalled. "No, no, no, no! Can't do that!" he declared before yanking on a lever that the Zoombinis had failed to notice.

Instantaneously, the seats of the two stools were violently launched out of place by springs, which were only now visible, sending Weiswyo and Iake careening into the air before plummeting back down and splashing into the river, one after the other.

"WAAAAAAAA – _oomfgh!_" they both spluttered as they were submerged.

Captain Cajun seemed to find this hilarious. "You all soakin' wet!" he laughed riotously, slapping his knee.

"Uh, sir," Tyscene said awkardly, "what was that for?"

"You _said _we could sit wherever we wanted to!" Weiswyo fumed as he and Iake stuck their heads out of the water.

"Oh, did I?" the Captain asked innocently. "My pardons. What I meant to say – sit wherever you want to, so long as you got at least one thing in common with ev'ryone sitting next to you."

"Well, that's just a _little_ bit different," said Echae, his voice dripping with bitter sarcasm.

"Aw, c'mon now, don't give me that look!" The Captain bent down to ruffle Echae's hair. "How fun would it be if I just let y'all on this here boat without any _challenge?_"

"_Very _fun."

"Come on, Echae, let's just do like he says. I want to get out of here," said Tyscene. She wheeled herself over to a seat in the corner and promptly clambered up onto it.

"Okay, fine," Echae sighed. He looked impatient on the outside, but inwardly he felt a rush of gratitude toward Captain Cajun; he and Tyscene had no features in common. "I guess this can't be _that _hard to do."

-----

After emerging from the water for the seventh time, Echae was starting to wonder if this would really be that easy.

"You know," Tyscene sniffed at Captain Cajun, "this wouldn't be nearly as difficult if you didn't keep catapulting us into the water every time we make a mistake." Her sodden green baseball cap was drooping low over her face, looking as though it would never be the same again.

"Oh, I know. But this way you'll learn faster!" he assured her, still looking incredibly amused.

"Well, let's try again," said Echae. It wouldn't be that bad if the seats had been in a straight line or a circle, but in their current arrangement, the seats in the middle were each surrounded by six other ones. Finding six Zoombinis who shared some physical trait with you, who in turn had to have six others with something in common with them, was no easy task.

"There's gotta be another way to do this," he muttered to Iake; the two of them were allowed to sit by each other due to their identical messy hair. "We're wasting time."

"Maybe we should ask Tyscene. She'll know what to do," Iake suggested, as several feet away the Captain started shouting a remonstration before yanking on the lever and sending a ponytailed Zoombini flying over their heads.

"Oh, get real. I know you're trying to get her to like you and all, but there's no way she – "

"_I've got an idea!!_" Tyscene blurted out.

"I stand corrected," Echae grumbled.

"We've been doing this all wrong," Tyscene declared as she rolled back onto the ferry. "We've just been going up and down the rows. What we _should _be doing is filling up the middle first!" She glanced at the Captain, seeking approval. "Right?"

The Captain merely waggled his eyebrows in response. "We'll have to see, now, won't we?"

"Tyscene, what are you getting at?" Echae asked cautiously.

"Well, think about it! If we fill up the middle first, it will be a lot easier to find a lot of people who have things in common with them. And we should do the outside last because those guys will only be sitting next to a few other people."

Echae was dumbstruck; he hadn't expected Tyscene to be able to think of a plan like that.

"Well, we can try it," he agreed, although he silently prayed that it wouldn't work. The last thing Tyscene needed was an ego boost.

Unfortunately, as Tyscene put her plan into action, Echae began to realize, to his horror, that it was working perfectly. Within a few minutes, everyone was seated and Captain Cajun was nodding in approval.

"Good job there," he remarked.

"Great idea, Tyscene!" Weiswyo said happily. "You were awesome! You were all, 'You sit there' and 'You sit over there', and it _worked! _That was – "

"Weiswyo, this is making me like you _less_."

"Oh. Sorry."

"That was pretty good, Tyscene," Echae muttered reluctantly. "I hate to admit it, but that idea was really smart of you."

Tyscene grinned back at him, although she didn't appear as smug as he had expected. "I'm glad you finally realize it."

"Now, since you're all on board," the Captain declared, "I suppose we best be shoving off!"

And with that, he dipped his oar in the water and pushed the ferry out into the river.

"Take one last look, guys. We won't see it again," Tyscene told the others, gazing back at the shoreline. Everyone else followed her gaze as the land diminished in the distance and finally vanished. Although everyone else was excited to be off, Echae was feeling morose; he couldn't help but think that with that shoreline vanished any chance of ever seeing Saetwo again.

The ferry ride was a very enjoyable one, the sun shining and a light breeze blowing. The Zoombinis didn't even seem to care that the Captain was whistling loudly to himself for most of the way. Echae, however, couldn't stop thinking. As he was watching a few of the passengers cautiously sneak into the fish basket and start munching on its contents, he finally decided to voice what was on his mind.

"Hey, Mister Cajun," he said, "I don't want to be rude, but what was the point of all that?"

"Yeah! Why couldn't you just let us sit wherever?" asked someone else. Most of the others started nodding, looking like they had the same question.

"Well now, that's a good question," the Captain replied. "But I'm certain y'all can answer it for yourselves. Why do _you _think? Why would I make y'all sit so that everyone had something in common with everyone next to them?"

"You have OCD," Echae guessed.

"Yes. I mean – _shut up! _I had a true and valid reason! I'm lookin' _after_ you! I'm helpin' you!"

"How the heck was all _that _supposed to help us?!" Iake exclaimed, examining his spring as though he were afraid it would start rusting from all the water. "All you did was dump us in the river!"

"Now listen here, son. I'm helpin' you by gettin' you to look at things different. To think outside the box, you might say. If them Fleens decide they wanna come after you too, the only way you're gonna beat 'em is by using your brains. By using logic."

"There's that 'L' word again," Echae grumbled.

"So when you _do _finally meet up with those yellow pains in the neck, I want y'all to remember what you've learned so far on your little quest. I'm certain it will help you more than you realize."

No one could think of a response to this. Echae thought back and, to his shock, realized the Captain was right. It seemed like every puzzle they had solved thus far required some sort of unconventional thinking, and he had come away from them all the wiser. Actually, he already felt a _lot _smarter than he had back on Zoombini Isle.

About half an hour later, the distant shore finally came into view, and within minutes the ferryboat had pulled up onto the sand.

"Thank you so much, Mister Cajun," Echae said cordially as he and the others gleefully hopped off the boat and onto dry land. "You helped us out a _lot_."

"Well, I do what I can. Now, y'all remember what I told you back there, you hear?"

"Yeah, yeah. Learn from experience, think outside the box, whatever," Tyscene replied unconcernedly as she wheeled past the Captain. After narrowing his eyes at her and glancing surreptitiously around, he gave Tyscene a nudge with the oar that sent her tumbling ungracefully onto the beach.

"Maybe you'll learn something from _that_," he remarked, grinning.

Echae and a few others were unable to contain their laughter as Tyscene struggled back into a standing position and gave Captain Cajun an acidic glare with her single eye.

"Good luck to you all," the Captain saluted the group gathered on the beach as he set his oar into the water and pushed off. Everyone crowded near the shore and started shouting goodbyes.

"See ya, Mister Cajun!"

"Thanks for everything!"

"I'll be seein' you all again, no doubt," the Captain called out to them. "And I'll keep an eye out for your friends, I do believe."

Echae blinked. "You really think you're going to run into them?" he shouted. "What about the Fleens?"

"Well, son, I must say," the Captain called back over his shoulder as he shrunk into the distance, "if your friends are anywhere near as smart as all of you, them Fleens don't stand a chance."


	14. Dimensia Dementia

Even though they had successfully vanquished the Fleens, the Zoombinis' trek through the forest was far from complete. The next several days offered no change in scenery whatsoever, and more than one member of the group was beginning to suspect that Xekrai had gotten them lost.

"Saetwo, you look worried," Touli remarked one evening as they were taking a break.

"I just can't stop thinking about what Romelau said," Saetwo explained. "He said they'd come back for us. And I'm sure they're going to be true to their word."

"Get real," Xekrai sniffed from nearby. "We totally wasted them. They're gonna think twice before messing with us again."

For once, not even Touli seemed convinced by his words.

"Xekrai, maybe you forgot," said Saetwo, "but they've been waiting for _years _to get their revenge on us. I don't think a few bee stings are going to slow them down."

"All right then, Saetwo, what do _you _suggest?"

"Well, for starters, I think we should look for somewhere safe to spend the night. If we get caught out in the open, we're dead meat."

"Oh, come _on_," Xekrai groaned. "We're in the middle of a Fleen-infested forest. I _don't _think anyone else lives out – "

He abruptly fell silent and, after a moment, started swiveling his head around.

"Do you guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" asked Uloobu.

"It sounds like. . . but it couldn't be. . . _band _music?"

The other Zoombinis glanced at each other. Saetwo was about to make a quip about Xekrai's questionable sanity level when, suddenly, she heard it too; a raucous group of horns, woodwinds, and percussion. It was ever so faint, coming from far off in the distance, but definitely there. Given the confused looks of the others, it seemed they could hear it as well.

"Well," said Saetwo, "who feels like going to a concert?"

-----

It was dark by the time they crashed through the undergrowth into where they thought the music had been coming from. Unfortunately, the band had fallen silent long ago, and there were no musicians to be seen anywhere.

"Great," Conneda grumbled. "Now we're even more lost, and I'm tired. Somebody carry me."

Everyone disobligingly backed away as Conneda collapsed onto the ground.

"I could've sworn there was music coming from here!" Xekrai muttered to himself, looking around.

Uloobu suddenly looked very frightened. "Uh oh. . . we're all hearing music coming from nowhere. . . I've heard about this. You guys realize what this means?"

"What?" asked Touli as she and the others stared at him in fear.

"This forest is making us go _crazy!!_" he cried. "A few more days and we'll be eating each other!!"

Everyone groaned and turned away. Before Xekrai could verbally abuse Uloobu further, though, there was a loud rustling in the leaves far above their heads, and then, suddenly, a voice.

"Guests?" said the voice. Then again, sounding delighted: "_Guests!_ I'll be right down!"

Everyone jumped at the sound of the disembodied voice and started scanning the trees to find its source, but they were a little too late. The person who had spoken was already climbing down a thick vine attached to an enormous tree trunk.

"Woah," said Saetwo. "Who are _you?_"

The Zoombinis got a better look at the stranger as she plopped onto the ground in front of them. Saetwo had never seen anything like her, but she looked like a cross between a squirrel and a raccoon: a furry brown mammal with dark rings around her bushy tail. She was wearing a purple apron, and, like every other creature on this continent, was quite a bit taller than the Zoombinis.

"Well, that's a funny question," she said in an amiable voice. "I should be asking _you _that, considering you're all going to be staying at my hotel!"

"_What _hotel?" Xekrai asked suspiciously.

The squirrel thing sighed and folded her arms. "The one right behind me?"

All the Zoombinis got a start at that. The light was so dim, no one had even noticed that behind her was a solid wall made of five hugely tall, thick tree trunks, and carved into them were five rows of five Zooombini-sized alcoves, each with a little ledge underneath it.

Xekrai marched up to it. "_This _is a hotel?" he exclaimed, as tactful as ever. "What a total dump! You must have to _pay _people to stay here."

Saetwo winced, suspecting that he had just ruined their chances of actually having somewhere to stay. But to her surprise, the squirrel just laughed in amusement.

"Actually," she said matter-of-factly to Xekrai, "this is the Hotel Dimensia, the most prestigious hotel for miles around. But I get ahead of myself. My name is Ulla. I own this hotel, and I'm also the forest's foremost – and only – band director."

"So that was _your _band we heard?" asked Saetwo.

"That's right, darling. You must have caught the end of rehearsal. But from the looks of all of you, that's not why you came by."

"Oh, well, we don't have any money," Saetwo said quickly, realizing what the squirrel was implying.

"And even if we did, I'm sure we could find someplace better than _this_," Xekrai retorted. "Half of your rooms are boarded up!"

Saetwo looked up and realized he was right. Nearly a dozen of the little doors had one or two wooden planks nailed across them.

"Oh, yeah, about that," said Ulla, looking very annoyed at someone not present. "Some of the rooms got wrecked by Fleens."

"You're _kidding!_" Conneda cried.

"You mean they've been here too?!" Uloobu exclaimed.

Ulla sighed, grabbed a broom that was leaning against the wall and started sweeping. "Oh, honey, those good-for-nothing yellow freaks have been causing trouble all over the place. Ever since they first came here, everybody's got a complaint about 'em. They once tried to sink my friend Captain Cajun's boat."

"And they tricked Arno into buying that pizza machine from them," Saetwo suddenly recalled. "It was too big for him to even use."

"Little toads," Ulla muttered in contempt. "So I suppose you all have had a run-in with them as well?"

The Zoombinis all glanced guiltily among themselves, wondering how much of the truth they ought to reveal.

"Actually," Saetwo finally spoke up, ignoring the death glare she was receiving from Xekrai, "we're kind of the reason they're here in the first place."

She proceeded to reluctantly tell Ulla the whole story, deciding the squirrel deserved to know exactly whom she was letting stay at her hotel. By the time Saetwo finished, all the Zoombinis were expecting Ulla to chase them out in a fit of rage. But she looked strangely sympathetic.

"So those rotten bullies are after you now?" she inquired, leaning against the broom handle. "Well, that seems awfully unjust to me. You kids are all caught up in some silly feud that's got nothing to do with you. That being said, it certainly wouldn't be right of me to let you go off by yourselves."

"You're letting us stay for free?" Xekrai asked suspiciously.

"You kids need it. Just make sure you're all in a room by midnight. That's when the hotel closes."

"I'm pretty sure we won't be that long," said Touli, glancing at a little wooden clock that was hanging from an adjacent tree trunk. It was 11:25.

"Perfect. Well, I've got to go and get ready. We've got a big tour coming up; work, work, work, work, play."

And she strolled off, leaving the Zoombinis to themselves.

Conneda was the first one to skate up to the wall of doors, but paused when he realized just how high up the loftier rooms were. "Um. . . how are we going to get up there?"

"Uloobu, since we can fly, you and I had better get rooms on the top," said Saetwo.

"Okay, but I'm a little afraid of heights," Uloobu replied uneasily. He flew up to a room on the top door, nudged it open, and flew inside.

"Hey, it's kinda cozy in here," he remarked.

Saetwo zoomed up to the room on Uloobu's right, but no matter how hard she pushed on the door, it remained firmly shut.

"Hey! What gives?"

Uloobu poked his head out. "Maybe the Fleens trashed that one too," he suggested.

"No, then she would have boarded it up." Pausing to think, Saetwo stopped hovering for a moment and touched down on the ledge – and the instant she did, it pulled out from underneath her and disappeared into the wall. All the Zoombinis beneath her jumped out of the way as she came crashing to the ground.

"Woah! You okay there, Saetwo?" asked Conneda.

Saetwo groaned and sat up. "You know, this sort of thing doesn't even surprise me anymore," she sighed. "I guess we all need to go into a certain room."

"Oh, another puzzle?" Uloobu left his room and floated down to join the others. "Let me help! I bet I can figure it out."

Xekrai just scoffed. "As if. The way you fly, you can't even figure out which way is up."

"He helped us get rid of the Fleens, remember?" Saetwo reminded him. "At least give him a chance."

"I'm sure it's got something to do with our features. It always does," Uloobu pondered. "Maybe this top row is for everybody who's got. . . one eye or a purple nose or something."

"Worth a shot," said Saetwo.

Unfortunately, all of the other Zoombinis had serious problems climbing their way to the upper levels of the hotel, and more often than not their efforts simply led to the ledges yanking back in before they could even open the door. Their first real victory came when another purple-nosed Zoombini managed to struggle all the way up to the room next to Uloobu's and, after waiting tensely, realized that the ledge was staying where it was.

"Looks like you were right, Uloobu," Saetwo said cheerfully. "Now we just need to get everyone with a purple nose up there."

Xekrai wasn't nearly as optimistic. "Well, that only wasted ten whole minutes," he grumbled. "At this rate, we'll have three people inside by midnight."

With a little more trial and error, the group determined that all of the rows were divided by nose color, and even with the numerous boarded-up rooms, there still seemed to be space enough for everyone.

"I guess you're next to me, Saetwo," said Conneda, who had a blue nose as well. He was nestled in the room on the far right of the second row.

"Guess so," Saetwo agreed, flying up to the door. However, she had barely reached it when the ledge pulled out and dropped her to the ground once again.

"What the – _now _what's wrong?!" she demanded.

"Hmm. . . ." Uloobu flew up to the hotel and looked the remaining rooms up and down. "I don't know, Saetwo. You're definitely in the right place."

"Or maybe you're just stupid, Uloobu," Xekrai called up from his room.

Suddenly, Ulla stuck her head out from behind a tree. "About to close up shop – grab a room!" she warned, pointing at the clock, which now read 11:45.

"Ulla, what's with these stupid doors?" said Touli. "We can't figure out where we're all supposed to go!"

"Oh, don't worry, you will," Ulla replied with a wink. "As I say, a place for everyone and everyone in a place."

But as she left, the group didn't feel much more hopeful.

"Uloobu, I'm sure your idea's right," Saetwo reassured him. "But maybe I need to go in that _other _room. The two rooms at the end of the row are boarded up, so the only other place I could be is in the middle. Right under you."

"Yeah. . . right under me. . . ."

Then his eye lit up.

"Saetwo, you're a _genius!_"

"Uh. . . I am?"

"Yeah! Look, only those two rooms in the middle column aren't boarded up, because we're the only two with propellers! The rows go by nose color, but the _columns _go by – "

"Our feet!" Saetwo chimed in joyously, realizing what he meant. "Or I mean, whatever else we have!"

She immediately flew to the middle room of the second row, and the door opened as though it had always been waiting for her.

From there it was easy. Once they had figured out what group of Zoombinis went in each column, while at the same time keeping in mind what row they belonged in, it was only a matter of minutes before everyone had found their room and was safely settled in for the night.

Uloobu was the last one to enter his room, but as he was flying past Saetwo's room, she called him over.

"That was so smart of you," she said. "I can't believe you figured it out."

And then, before she knew what had happened, she had given him a little kiss on the cheek.

"Oh, geez. . . ." Uloobu giggled, rapidly turning from blue to red.

"WOOOOOOO!" Conneda called from his room.

"Of course, you know what this means," Saetwo pondered. "The only rooms that were boarded up were. . . the ones that weren't meant to hold anybody in the first place."

Uloobu looked surprised. "You think. . . Ulla _knew _we were coming?"

"She's a stalker. I knew it," Touli muttered from a room kitty corner to Saetwo's.

"Touli, you did _not_," said one of the other girls.

As the clock struck midnight and Ulla reappeared, she didn't look at all surprised to find everyone in a room.

"What did I tell you?" she said cheerfully. "I said I wouldn't turn any of you away. You can trust me."

"Thanks, Ulla," Saetwo said graciously. "We owe you one."

"And don't worry," the squirrel went on. "If those Fleens feel like showing up again, we'll see how they like being blindsided by a fifty-pound tuba."

Everyone laughed.

As Ulla disappeared once more to wrap up rehearsal, Saetwo snuggled up and tried to go to sleep, but found it very difficult. Now that she could finally stop worrying about the Fleens for a while, her head was filled with other worries. Most of all, she wondered how Echae was doing. She hoped he had managed to steer clear of a Fleen attack, and as always, she sadly wondered if they would ever see each other again.

"You okay, sweetheart?"

Saetwo looked up; Ulla was peering into her room.

"Ulla? Don't you have to finish rehearsal?"

"Rehearsal's over. It's after twelve-thirty."

"Oh." She hadn't realized how long she had been thinking. "Well, I guess I'm just kind of worried about a friend of mine."

"Is he here with you?"

"No. He's – hey, how'd you know he's a boy?"

"I could tell from the look on your face," Ulla said with a wink.

Saetwo found herself blushing slightly. "Well, he's somewhere north of here, but I don't know where."

"Mm hmm." Ulla absentmindedly grabbed the broom and started sweeping again. "And that's why you're worried, right? You lost him?"

"It's worse than that. It's my fault he's lost. I made a bad decision, and now I don't know if I'll ever find him. And even if I do. . . ."

She gathered the courage to voice her worst fear of all. "I don't know if he'll forgive me."

Ulla just smiled. "Are you really?" she said. "Because that seems a little silly to me."

"What? How can it be silly?" Saetwo was rather upset by that remark. She had just poured her heart out to Ulla, and now the squirrel was making fun of her.

"Listen, honey. How long have you two been friends?"

"Practically our whole lives."

"And just from watching you, I can tell you're the type who likes to get into trouble. Isn't that right?"

"Well. . . ." She had to admit it was. Even before the Bloats came, she had always enjoyed sticking her nose in places it didn't belong and had a tendency to go exploring places she had been explicitly told not to go. And every single time, Echae had been there with her. He was far more reluctant to break the rules, but even when they had gotten in trouble, he never seemed to care. He was always just happy to be having fun with his best friend.

"I'm sure you two have been through a lot together," Ulla went on. "And whatever's come between you now, you'll get through that too."

"You really think so?"

"Well of course. If he were the kind who lets a little thing like this upset him, then he most certainly wouldn't be your friend."

Saetwo thought about that for a long time. And the more she thought about it, the more she realized Ulla was right. She had made plenty of mistakes before, and Echae had always forgiven her. And he must know that she was looking night and day for him now. When they did finally meet up again, she was sure they would just laugh the whole thing off, and in the future they would think of this funny incident whenever they needed something to smile about.

"But then, I don't know much," said Ulla, putting the broom away. "I'm just a band director."

She reached up and gave Saetwo a pat on the head before leaving for the final time. Saetwo smiled widely, turned over, and was asleep less than a minute later.

-----

**A/N: **And with that, dear readers, we come to the halfway mark! And it only took a year! Yep, I've got the whole story planned out and it's either going to be 27 or 28 chapters, depending on how long things get. But I thought I'd take this time to thank everyone who has supported this story! It's wonderful to know I'm not the only crazy person who likes Zoombinis! And don't worry, it only gets more exciting in the second half, with more characters, more shocking revelations and more preteen angst! Hooray! So stay tuned!


	15. Meanwhile

The atmosphere at the Fleens' home had rarely been more miserable. Everyone who had been present at the ambushing of the Zoombinis was gathered around inside the ring of crude wooden houses, groaning and administering ice packs on their numerous bee stings.

"That completely sucked," complained one, who had short, spiky green hair. "I can't believe we got beat by a bunch of _kids_."

"A bunch of _Zoombini _kids!" growled a second one, trying unsuccessfully to get the tangles out of her blue hair before tying it back up in an upward-sticking ponytail. "I thought Romelau said these guys were _stupid!_"

"No chance a' that. They figured us out easy," sighed a third one sitting on a log, whose eyes were hidden behind a purple mask. "_Now _how are we gonna get revenge?"

The three-eyed Fleen came limping toward them. "Stop whining, stupid. We'll think of something."

"Oh yeah? Like _what?_" the spiky-haired Fleen snapped at her. "Romelau's oh-so-perfect plan failed. We're finished. We got nothing."

"Can't we just go after 'em?" asked the blue-haired one.

"Oh, it's pointless," said the masked one. "They'd just find a way to beat us again. And – _ow_– I don't think I can handle any more of that."

The three-eyed Fleen looked at her companions in disgust. "I can't believe I'm hearing this!" she snarled. "You guys get a few little bee stings and you wanna just _quit?! _Those little blue freaks of nature stole our island and marooned us on this dump! You guys are pathetic."

"Shut up, Dreesi," said the spiky-haired Fleen. "Nobody wants to hear your opinion."

"It's not my _opinion_, it's the _truth! _What would Romelau say if he saw you guys like this?"

"_Romelau?!_" The spiky-haired Fleen jumped off the log he had been sitting on with such vehemence that everyone near him jumped in surprise. Even Dreesi took a few steps backwards.

"You guys still care what _Romelau _thinks?!" he roared. "It's _Romelau's _fault we got in this mess! If he hadn't a' gotten selfish with the old business, we wouldn't've got kicked off Zoombini Isle in the first place! And if he hadn't been all obsessed with getting his _revenge _on them, we wouldn't all need _tetanus _shots right now!!"

"Geez, calm down, Narnoo," Dreesi said uneasily. "I'm just saying – "

"No, I don't _care _what you were saying! You all've been too busy worshipping Romelau to notice he hasn't done a _thing _for us! Every time we get in trouble, it's his fault! And I, for one, am _sick _of it!"

By now, every Fleen in the area was staring at him in shock.

"If you ask me," he went on, "it's time we had a _new _leader."

"But Romelau's _always _been our leader!" protested a Fleen wearing bright pink sunglasses.

"Yeah, and look where it's got us!" Narnoo shot back. "We're living in the middle of the forest like a bunch a' backwoods hicks, doing nothing but sinking people's boats to steal their food and pawning off pizza machines just to make _money!_"

Every Fleen in the forest was silent. Narnoo had their attention, and he knew it.

"And now those little Zoombini brats are here," he went on. "Well I say, who cares? They won't last another week! But Romelau's just gonna push us and push us and send us after 'em again and again until he finally gets his stupid vengeance. On a bunch of _kids! _What a waste of time!"

Several of the Fleens were beginning to wear annoyed looks of realization. Some of them were nodding in agreement.

"If we had a _different_ leader, we wouldn't have to put up with this crap! We wouldn't have to go around stealing to get by! We could start a new business, like we _used _to have! People would _respect _us!"

"Yeah!" snarled the angry-looking Fleens.

Dreesi was the only one who didn't look convinced. "Narnoo, quit being an idiot! You don't even know what you're talking about!"

"I know _exactly _what I'm talking about! Now I say we march up to that bighead and tell him his time is _up! _And if he don't come quietly, we'll get violent! Who's with me?!"

The crowd roared in agreement. All at once, they all leapt to their feet (or other appendages) and charged off through the forest, shouting and cursing wildly, their long-stewing frustration at their leader flared up into complete fury.

Narnoo was leading the way, feeling such a thrilled delight he could never remember feeling before. Finally, they were taking control of their own lives! As they crashed through the foliage, he thought how Romelau couldn't possibly stand up to all of them. They would win, he knew it, he could _feel _it –

Then Romelau appeared directly in front of them, and everyone froze.

"Am I missing out on a party or something?" he asked innocently.

Narnoo glanced behind him. Everyone's anger and excitement had completely vanished at the very sight of their leader. They had all fallen dead silent, staring fearfully at him, afraid to say a word.

Someone nudged Narnoo forward.

"Well? What's goin' on?" Romelau demanded of him.

Narnoo couldn't believe it. How could the entire group just _abandon _him like this? How could Romelau be so imposing that just seeing him had made them all instantly lose their reserve?

Well, even if no one else had the guts to tell Romelau off, _he _did.

He cleared his throat. "Romelau. . . we've had it," he said as firmly as he could. "You haven't done a thing for us since we've been here. With you in charge, we have to get by on stealin' and cheatin' everybody all the time. Everybody hates us. And now you try and get back and those Zoombini kids, and look what happened."

Romelau did nothing except raise an eyebrow. "So what are you saying?"

"I'm saying. . . ." Narnoo glanced back at the others for support, but they were silent. Of course.

"I'm saying we don't want you as leader anymore. Anybody else could lead us better."

It was only now that some of the other Fleens found their voices.

"Yeah."

"He's right."

"We're sick of it."

"So you don't think I'm a good leader?" Romelau questioned, not sounding surprised or concerned in the least. "Well, majority's always right, of course. If you all think I'm doing a bad job, it must be true."

The Fleens all glanced at each other in confusion.

"I guess I was just under a different impression," Romelau continued, beginning to pace thoughtfully back and forth in midair, his twin engines spurting flames all the while. "I mean, when we first got here and we were all about to starve to death, wasn't _I _the one who found all the food for us? And since you all were too dense to even know how to build your own houses, didn't I show you all how to do it? Oh, and unless I'm mistaken, wouldn't we have been chased out of this forest too – dozens of times over – if I hadn't scared everyone into leaving us alone?"

Narnoo's heart sank. All the other Fleens were looked visibly disheartened.

"But _you're _the reason we got kicked off Zoombini Isle in the first place," someone spoke up.

"Is that right? Way _I _remember it, I just wanted us Fleens to get the recognition we deserved. We were working hard and doing great, and those Zoombinis just couldn't stand to see us do better than them. I could've sworn _they _kicked you all off, not me."

No one could even bear to look Romelau in the eye anymore.

"_That's _why I thought we oughta get revenge on those kids," he went on. "So what if they didn't do anything to us? You know how much those Zoombinis love their kids. Wouldn't it hurt 'em even worse if we did something to the _little _guys? Can't you just hear their poor bleeding-heart parents begging us to do what we wanted to them and to 'spare their children'?"

Narnoo was staring at the ground, a cold fury building up inside him. Romelau had directed all of that at _him_. He had won and he knew it, and he was enjoying every moment of torturing Narnoo about it.

_And that's why_, he suddenly realized, _Romelau__ will always be leader. All he does is trick and manipulate. He doesn't waste any time worrying about anybody else. Not even us._

"But, if you all say so, I guess I'll just step down," Romelau sighed theatrically. "After all, you've all done _so _good without me before."

Narnoo looked up and saw that Romelau was in the process of turning around, but was looking expectantly at him. His insides boiled. Even now their leader wasn't letting him hear the end of this.

"Wait, Romelau," he said in a monotone voice, because he knew it was what Romelau wanted.

The leader of the Fleens turned back around. "What's that?"

"We don't want you to go," Narnoo said through clenched teeth. "We still want you to be leader." Never before had he hated himself so much.

"Oh, well, all right then," Romelau said pleasantly. "In that case, I say we get back to finishing what we started, and get back at those Zoombinis."

The other Fleens all looked surprised.

"But they're long gone by now, aren't they?" asked the masked one.

Romelau looked impatient for the first time. "Don't be stupid. There's only _one _path in this whole forest and we all know where it goes. We can find those Zoombinis no problem."

"What are we gonna do to them?" asked somebody else.

"That remains to be seen, doesn't it? Anyway, there's only _one _Zoombini I want right now."

"You mean the girl with the propeller, boss?" inquired the blue-haired Fleen.

Romelau gave her an odd look. "Why would I want _her?_" he asked.

"Well she and that bald kid figured out how to beat us!" Narnoo exclaimed, rapidly losing what minimal patience he had. "And she was the one you went after!"

"Yeah, why'd you chase after _her_, anyway?" demanded one of the other Fleens.

"An eye for an eye, a nose for a nose," Romelau replied cryptically. "One Fleen for every Zoombini. That's how it goes."

"Hey, that rhymed!" remarked one of the stupider Fleens, only to receive a smack upside the head from one of his companions.

Narnoo was becoming exasperated. "But you _must _want to get revenge on her!"

"Of course I do, you idiot. She and her little bald friend made us all look like morons and they're both going to suffer especially for it. But she's not the one I want to get my proverbial hands on."

"Then who – "

"_Think_, numbskull!" Romelau roared at Narnoo. "Who was the Zoombini who _wanted _my attention? What did he say about his father?"

"Something like he was dead because of you," Narnoo replied in bewilderment. "But what's that got to do with – "

"Do you know who his father is? Do _any _of you know?"

The Fleens all stared dumbly back at him.

Romelau sighed deeply, seemingly realizing how clueless his group truly was. "His father," he said slowly, "is Iadwi, mayor of Zoombini Isle."

One by one, the Fleens' eyes lit up. Their faces cracked into wide, malicious grins, fueled by the memories of a horrible secret, a horrible plan, that only they knew about. They realized now exactly what Romelau intended to do.

"All I need to do is talk to that one," Romelau concluded, "and it'll all be over." His features suddenly grew hard. "So if you're all not too lazy to move your butts, we can get going."

As though a spell over them had suddenly been broken, every Fleen present started scrambling frantically back to their houses, eager to pack up their things and be on their way as quickly as they could. Narnoo attempted to follow them but didn't manage to go more than three steps.

"Oh, not you, Narnoo," Romelau said calmly. "Seeing as you haven't exactly been the most loyal Fleen to me recently, I decided you're going to need a little more supervision."

Narnoo whirled around to face him, looking furious. "What are you – "

"Oh Dreesi, would you come here?"

Narnoo's eyes practically bulged right out of his head as Dreesi came sauntering up to them, gazing smugly at her charge with all three eyes.

"Hello there, Narnoo," she said. "I guess this is what you call irony."


	16. Toadally Awesome

The next several days were memorable for every inhabitant of the new continent. Anyone who paid attention noticed things changing all around. For one, there were rumors coming from both the north and the south of strange-looking blue creatures travelling inexorably inland, never stopping for anything. Nobody knew for sure who they were or where they had come from, but they began to piece stories together. A few people, such as the famous Captain Cajun, claimed to have met them personally.

There were also far more disturbing rumors. Some people swore that they had seen the Fleens – whom almost nobody living there had been lucky enough to avoid – on the move as well, and it seemed as though they were in pursuit of the mysterious blue creatures. Nobody who saw them was stupid enough to stick around for long, but somehow it got out that, as they traveled, the sinister yellow beings did nothing but rant about seeking _revenge_.

Things were changing, that was for certain. But nobody could imagine just how big that change would turn out to be.

-----

"I'm beginning to think we should have gone south," Weiswyo muttered as he attempted to roll through the muddy swampland that surrounded them. "For days now it's been nothing but swamp after marsh after swamp."

"Yeah, Weiswyo, going south would have been a _great _idea," retorted Tyscene, who, naturally, was having an equal amount of trouble moving. "Instead of getting stuck in the mud and dying quietly, we could have gotten mercilessly killed by _Fleens_. That would have been _so _much better."

"Oh yeah. . . I keep forgetting about that."

Echae, whose rollerskates were completely useless in this kind of terrain, was having to stomp through the mire and was having little better luck getting through than the others. "Guys, let's not talk about the Fleens, okay?" he said irritably as he passed by them. "We've got other things to worry about."

"Like the river coming up," remarked Iake, who was having the hardest time of all – bouncing through a swamp is all but impossible.

"Yeah. Like – " Echae broke off and turned to stare at him. "Wait – what do you mean, the _river?_"

Iake appeared stunned that he actually knew something Echae didn't. "Didn't you know? Swamps are usually nearby a river or a lake. I'm guessing a river, by the size of this place."

"But we already _crossed _a river!" Tyscene fumed. "There's not going to be _another _one so close by. Don't be stupid."

"I think she's right, Iake," Echae said softly as they continued on. "Captain Cajun would have warned us if there were another river we had to get across. I don't think we have to worry."

-----

"Well, I stand corrected."

It was the next morning, and the group was staring in disbelief at the river directly in front of them.

"This must be the same one," Iake pondered. "It probably bent back on itself or something, somewhere north of here."

"So you're saying we get to cross the same river _twice_," Tyscene grumbled in incredulity. "And I don't see any friendly boatman this time. So now what?!"

"I don't know," said Echae, "but usually that question gets answered for us within a few minutes. So let's just stay here and wait, and I'm sure the solution will reveal itself."

And so the group sat down where they were and began to wait.

Twenty minutes later, nothing had happened.

"Echae, you're an idiot," said Tyscene.

"Well, that's not very nice," said a voice from behind Echae.

"For real, Tyscene," Echae agreed. "I mean I'm doing the best I – wait a minute."

He turned around to face the person who had just spoken. So did everyone else.

"Who the heck are _you?!_" exclaimed Weiswyo.

The entire group was staring at a round, purple creature with insect-like antennae, wearing a dark purple leotard, clutching a strange-looking stick with a star at the end. . . and hovering several inches above the ground, by way of a pair of transparent, fluttering wings.

As the Zoombinis faced him, he suddenly looked horrified.

"Aww, _no! _Nobody's supposed to see me!" he cried – it was definitely a he, for despite the less-than-masculine getup he had a very gruff voice. Before anyone could react, he shot into the sky and zoomed off.

"Hey, wait a minute! Come back here!" Tyscene ordered, immediately giving chase. Echae and the others followed her, more out of fascination than anything else.

Whatever the strange purple thing was, he obviously wasn't used to making escapes, as he didn't even think of flying over the river and left the group to chase him upstream along the riverbank. Furthermore, after only a few moments he began to show visible signs of exhaustion, slowing down and dropping. It was then that Tyscene leapt at him, knocking him fully to the ground and leaving him sprawled.

"Tyscene, was that really necessary?" Echae asked in exasperation.

"Nope." Tyscene leaned over the downed creature as the others circled around him. "Now what exactly are you, and why did you fly away from us?"

"Yeah! We may look scary, but we're nice," Iake assured him.

"'Cept for Tyscene. She really is scary," said Weiswyo.

Needless to say, a few seconds later Weiswyo was nursing his badly bruised cheek as the purple thing finally sat up.

"You don't get it," he huffed. "I'm not allowed to be seen by anybody. I'm a _fairy_, for crying out loud."

"You're a fairy?" Echae repeated skeptically.

"Of course! I'm Bruno, the marsh fairy."

"Nice leotard, _Bruno_," Tyscene chuckled.

The fairy glared at her and clutched his wand tightly. "You don't believe me, do you?" he said. "Come on! I got the wings! I got the magic wand! What more proof do you need?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe a diamond tiara or some sparkly fairy dust?" Tyscene laughed, clearly not convinced that this Bruno was any kind of magic. Echae couldn't help but laugh as well.

Bruno's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Fine then. I'll prove it."

He pointed his wand at Tyscene, who was laughing too hard to notice, and gave it a little tap. All of a sudden, there was a light _ding _and she was surrounded by a bright white glow. As soon as she opened her eye long enough to notice, she instantly fell silent.

"Now watch _this_," said Bruno, pointing and tapping his wand at a small yellow butterfly that was circling above their heads.

All the Zoombinis gasped. In the blink of an eye and with another _ding_, the butterfly suddenly appeared resting on the ground, exactly where Tyscene had been – and she was ten feet in the air.

"WAAAUGH!!" she yelped as she came crashing back down to earth. Echae and the others exploded into astonished exclamations of disbelief. Bruno merely folded his arms smugly.

Tyscene slowly drew herself up. "Okay. . . I believe you," she said grudgingly.

"That's about all I can do, though," Bruno admitted. "See, marshes can get really messy, you know. I'm supposed to keep it as organized as I can. So if stuff gets out of place, I put it back where it belongs. But I obviously have to move whatever was there too."

Echae's eye twitched. "That's your magic power? You make stuff _switch places?!_"

"Hey, it's a lot harder than it sounds."

Several Zoombinis raised eyebrows at each other.

"And here I thought you might be able to help us," Tyscene sighed. "C'mon guys, let's get out of here."

She turned and began walking further upstream, a few others following her.

Bruno suddenly looked alarmed. "Wait! Don't go that way."

"What? Why – AHHH!! WHAT THE?!"

Tyscene sprang backwards as the river erupted in a huge splash in front of her. From the spray suddenly leapt what appeared to be an enormous yellow frog, though certainly not the kind the Zoombinis were used to seeing – besides being several times their size, it had a bright red stripe down its back and didn't have any forearms at all. It landed on the bank with such force that the ground shook. Everyone who had been following Tyscene screamed and scrambled back to the others.

"_That's _why," Bruno replied as the frog creature leaned over and examined a mortified Tyscene.

"ACK! Get it away! Get it away!" she whined, inching backwards in fear.

"It's not _mine_. This is one of the Tattooed Toads that live around this river."

"_One _of them? You mean there's _more?!_"

"Oh sure. Just around here I'm sure there's dozens."

Tyscene gaped at him as the Tattooed Toad, appearing satisfied, turned around and began hopping upstream.

"Don't look so shocked. They're harmless," said Bruno. "You all could go meet 'em if you wanted."

"Actually, that sounds like fun," Echae said brightly. "Let's go, you guys."

"Come on, Tyscene," said Weiswyo, shoving her along as the others set off; she was still lying twitching on the ground, looking thoroughly traumatized.

-----

"Wowwww! _Look _at them all!"

The Zoombinis were all standing among a large group of Tattooed Toads, marveling at their size and color. All of them were two-legged and yellow, but each one of them had a different pattern on its back. Some of them were stripes, while others were clovers, diamonds, or other unusual shapes.

"You're sure they're friendly?" Echae giggled as one of them bent down and started sniffing him.

"Absolutely," said Bruno. "They wouldn't hurt a fly – well, no, they would. They eat flies. But they wouldn't hurt any of you."

"How come they've all got weird markings on their backs?" asked one bespectacled Zoombini.

"Nobody really knows. But they sure come into play with those water lilies out there on the river. See 'em?"

Floating in the water were rows upon rows of bright green lilypads. They came in several different shapes, and each one had a flower in its center whose shape seemed to match one of the symbols that showed up on the toads.

"They're really territorial. They'll only hop on lilypads that have the same color or shape as they do."

"Same thing with those purple crabs, huh?" said Iake. Shuffling along across the rows of green were several similarly large crabs, each of which had a green marking on its shell, and it seemed as though they would only skitter onto a lilypad of the same shape.

"Yep, that's exactly right," the marsh fairy affirmed before turning to look back at the Zoombinis. They had very quickly grown accustomed to their new friends, and most of them were running around playing with the giant toads or even jumping up and down on their backs.

"Man, these things are _awesome!_" said Weiswyo.

"More than that," Echae said with a smile, "I think we just found our way across the river. Hey Bruno, you think they'd be able to carry us over if we sat on their backs?"

"Well, I guess. . . but I don't know how well that'll work. Remember they only get on certain lilypads. You'd have to find a path all the way across."

Echae thought for a moment. "But there's so many, and we can't see all the way across. We'll need an aerial view."

A few seconds later, he turned to Bruno with a wicked grin on his face.

"Ohhhhh no," the marsh fairy said worriedly. "Whatever you're thinking, I ain't doing it!"

-----

"Are you ready, Bruno?"

"I hate you."

Echae was sitting very unsteadily on Bruno's back, causing the fairy a visible amount of discomfort. The two of them were hovering high above the river, where they both had a clear view of the entire cluster of lilypads beneath them.

"Why has _he _gotta be up here with me?" Bruno called down.

"'Cause Echae's the intellectual leader of this group," Iake called back up.

"Okay, guys, I can see a path with orange flowers that leads all the way across. Somebody get on the toad with the orange stripe."

Predictably, Tyscene shoved her way to the front. "That would be _my _cue," she declared, clambering onto the back of one of the toads. After waiting patiently for her, the toad shuffled over to the riverbed.

"Okay, Hoppy, let's go."

Echae could barely contain his laughter. "_Hoppy?_"

"His name is Hoppy. Got a problem with that?"

Before Echae could reply, Tyscene's toad gave a mighty leap and slammed down on one of the lilypads. After waiting for a brief moment it shifted direction and leaped again, and so made its way slowly across the river.

"OW! OW! OW!" Tyscene yelped every time it landed. "Bad Hoppy! Stop! I'm getting sick!"

"Oh, this is rich," Echae said with a devilish grin.

"I guess it's not the most comfortable way across," Bruno observed.

Although it was a very bumpy ride, Tyscene's toad finally hopped all the way to the other side of the river while it narrowly avoided crossing paths with the purple crabs that were still skittering around. As it reached land, Tyscene slowly slid off its back and collapsed onto the ground, looking more green than blue.

"See any other paths, Echae?" asked Bruno as the toad dived into the water and swam back across.

"Hmm. . . oh, there's one! All the lilypads have four points."

So another Zoombini climbed onto the toad with the appropriate symbol on its back as the orange-striped toad ferried a second passenger across, following the same path as before.

"Oh man, I'm gonna barf," groaned the unfortunate Zoombini as the toad deposited him on the ground. Instead of swimming back across, though, this time it dived in and swam directly downstream, vanishing from sight.

"Aw, there goes Hoppy," said Echae.

"Well, they aren't gonna stick around forever," said Bruno.

The second toad, however, was having some problems. Standing directly in front of it was a crab with an identical lilypad symbol on its shell, snapping its pincers and barring the way.

"Um. . . a little help here?" the Zoombini nervously called up as the toad attempted to back away.

"Oh, no!" Echae moaned. "I didn't even think of the crabs! What do we do now?"

"Don't look at me. _You're _the smart one," Bruno countered. "And anyway, there's nothing we really can do. They both want to go on the same path, but they can't."

Echae thought long and hard, and then inspiration struck.

"But what if you _made _a new path?"

Bruno glanced at him. "I think the altitude's getting to you, buddy."

"No, listen! Use your magic wand and swap around two of the lilypads! If you made that circle-shaped one switch places with some other four-pointed one, then the toad could get across!"

Bruno, looking confused, looked down at the place where Echae was indicating and stared at it for a long time.

"Wow. That's actually a really good idea," he finally said.

So with Echae holding on tight, he flew down low over the river and tapped his wand at a circular lilypad next to the imperiled toad. With the familiar _ding_, it began to glow white. Bruno then flew over to another area and pointed at a four-pointed lilypad near a corner. There was another _ding_.

"It worked! It worked!" Echae cheered.

The four-pointed lilypad was now where the circular one had been, and just like that, a new path had suddenly been opened up. Sensing it immediately, the toad turned and began hopping along its way, leaving the crab looking very lost.

"Looks like that power of yours might come in handy after all, Bruno!" Echae said good-naturedly.

Before long, the entire bed of lilypads was filled with Tattooed Toads hopping across, the riding Zoombinis bouncing violently up and down with every leap they made. Bruno was switching lilypads around left and right to create paths where there had been none before, but none of the toads stayed for very long, forcing him and Echae to constantly look for different possibilities.

"Well, there's _almost _a blue path down there, but a few of them are the wrong color."

"No problem. We'll just swap 'em out for some blue ones."

"No no, don't use that one! Then the crab'll get stuck and get in the way."

"How about that one, the one that's got a diamond-shaped flower?"

"Hey, yeah! If we switch those two we'll make _two _new paths! Awesome!!"

Whenever one of the toads had a run-in with a crab, Bruno was able to create an escape for it. Although it took a _long _time – almost half an hour – eventually they had managed to get every single Zoombini safely across the river.

"And you're the last one," Bruno said to Echae when they had finished, flying over to join the Zoombinis on the other side. He landed on the ground very unceremoniously, and Echae tumbled off.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine. My back'll never be the same, though. And we're lucky we finished when we did." Bruno waved his wand demonstratively. "I'm out of magic."

"You can _run out _of magic?" asked Weiswyo, who was the only one in good enough condition to speak; everyone else looked like they would throw up if they tried.

"I'll get it back in a few hours. I just gotta recharge."

Echae slowly stood up. "Well, thanks a _lot_, Bruno. We definitely couldn't have gotten over here without you."

"Yeah, thanks," muttered a few others, turning pale from the effort.

Bruno suddenly looked a little concerned. "You guys – you're all going, then?"

"Duh. No way we're sticking around here," muttered Tyscene.

"What Tyscene's trying to say is, we're kind of looking for a place to live," Echae explained. "And as much as we'd like to stop, we don't really have the time."

"Why do you need to find somewhere to live?"

"Not that it's any business of _yours_," said Tyscene, "but our old home got taken over by a bunch of walking brick walls called Bloats. We had to sail all the way out here and – what the heck is wrong with you?"

As soon as Tyscene had mentioned the Bloats, Bruno had looked absolutely horrified, even dropping his wand in shock.

"I – I – you mean – "

"So you've heard of them too, then?" asked Echae.

"You could say that," Bruno said quietly, still looking unsettled. "Listen, all of you – _nobody _deserves to have their home taken away like that. So I just wanna let you guys know, I'm willing to do whatever to help out."

"You mean you want to come with us?" asked Iake.

"If you'd let me, that'd be awesome."

Echae blinked. "You really want to help us that bad?"

"Well I mean, I don't have to come with you the whole way if you don't want, it's just – I could probably help you out with some of the upcoming stuff, know what I'm saying?"

"I _am _getting sick of puzzles," said Weiswyo. "A little extra help would be nice."

"What? From _him? _No way!" Tyscene spat. "I wouldn't be caught dead around him and his girly little outfit! I have dignity!"

Echae glanced at something behind her on the other side of the river. "Hey Tyscene, Hoppy's back. It looks like he's waving goodbye to you!"

"Oh, man. . . ." Tyscene rapidly turned green again and ducked behind a bush.

"Right. You were saying something about dignity?"

Bruno was still looking anxious. "So, can I help or not?" he asked.

Echae shrugged. "I don't see why not. It could be nice."

"Anything to get out of here faster," Iake agreed.

As the group was getting ready to go, they suddenly heard a series of loud splashes coming from the river. Everyone turned around and, to their surprise, saw the entire group of Tattooed Toads sitting on top of the lilypads, croaking loudly at them.

"Awww, they love us," said Weiswyo.

Echae grinned. "Bye, everyone! And thanks!" he called as the group turned back around and left. "That was really fun, actually. And those toads were awesome."

"But I'm pretty sure they just made it so Tyscene will never be able to eat again," Iake remarked.

That just made Echae smile more widely. "Even better."


	17. Vexing Hexagons

"So, Bruno," Echae ventured, "what's it like being a marsh fairy?"

"Pardon?"

In the few days they had been traveling together, Bruno had done almost nothing but ask the Zoombinis as much about themselves as he could. He seemed interested in learning everything there was to know about them. On the other hand, he also chose to reveal as little about himself as possible.

"Oh, you know. Flying around, being all fairy-ish. . . do you like it, or does it get boring?"

"Seems kinda lonely to me," said the ponytailed Zoombini. "Living all by yourself."

"I don't mind it. It's not like I'm alone _all _the time. This place is full of people, you know."

"But no cities, huh?" said Weiswyo. "Guess that just means we'll have to start our own."

The thought of that would normally have worried Echae, but at the moment he was in a good mood. After over a week of trekking through inhospitable bogs, swamps, and creeks, the land had finally begun to change back into the solid grassland he was used to.

"That means we're near Shade Tree," Bruno had told them. "I have a feeling you guys will like it there."

The entire group had become visibly excited by his words. Shelter Rock already felt like a distant memory, and the idea that they might soon be coming to _another _rest stop seemed too good to be true.

Echae continued to think about this as the group continued along.

"But don't you still get lonely?" the blue-nosed Zoombini asked Bruno. "I mean, not having a family or anything like that?"

"Man, what is with you guys? You're all about friends and family."

"That's about all we've got right now," Tyscene said bluntly.

"Well, that's all well and good for you, but I don't need a family. I'm fine the way I am. And anyway, I still get to meet new people."

"Just don't get _too_ social," Weiswyo advised. "There's Fleens here, you know."

"Yeah, have you ever run into them? They're definitely not – YEOWCH!"

Before Bruno could reply, Iake had suddenly been violently flung backwards by an unseen force, sparks inexplicably flying from the ground where he had been standing an instant before.

"What the – what's this?" said Echae.

Everyone had been too absorbed in conversation to even notice what was directly in front of them. Completely covering the ground was a series of interlocking stone hexagons. Some of them appeared to have black markings etched into them, and many of them were linked together in long chains by semicircular metal loops. Behind this strange configuration, as well as on either side of the Zoombinis, the ground rose up in steep ledges that none of them were able to scale. It seemed like their only option was to go back the way they came.

"Ohhh, I remember this," mused Bruno. "The guy who built Shade Tree put this puzzle here for anyone who wanted to stay there. They had to pass a test to prove they were worthy."

"What kind of puzzle?" asked Tyscene.

"Oh no, I'm JUST FINE, thanks," Iake said loudly from where he was smoldering on the grass. 

"Have a look." Bruno hovered over one of the hexagons in a row near the Zoombinis and pointed at it with his wand. "See the marking on this one? What does this look like?"

The Zoombinis crowded as near Bruno as they could without stepping on any of the hexagons, peering at the one he was gesturing at.

"It looks like. . . oh no," Echae groaned. "An _eye_."

"And there's one that looks like a nose," observed someone else.

"Yep. You guys need to find somebody else who has some feature in common with you, and stand on the right hexagons so you're connected by a symbol that's the same as that feature."

"How will _that _help us, exactly?" Tyscene said skeptically.

"You saw it for yourself. These things have a current running through them." To demonstrate, he tapped a blank hexagon with his wand, causing another shower of sparks. "But a bunch of them are connected by these loops. If you stand on all of them in the right way, you'll create a circuit and direct the current over to _this _hexagon." He flew back to a hexagon in the middle of the back row, which, unlike the others, was bright red. 

"And that's good _why?_" Echae goaded.

"If you'll let me finish?" Bruno folded his arms and scowled. "Anyway, this red one is actually a switch. When it turns on, it raises up all the hexagons that are part of the circuit, so you'll all get up and out of here."

The Zoombinis all looked doubtfully at each other. 

"How do you know this is even safe?" asked Echae. "I mean, look at Iake."

"Ugh. . . I feel funny," Iake was groaning. Besides his being covered in singes, his hair had a very obvious static buildup. "How's my hair?"

"Terrible, as usual," Tyscene responded.

"Of course it's safe. The hexagons you're supposed to stand on, they're not dangerous. You just gotta make sure not to step on any of the other ones."

"This is sounding like a barrel of laughs already," Weiswyo muttered.

Echae wasn't feeling much more confident. "You sure about this, Bruno?"

"Trust me. I wouldn't get you guys in trouble."

Echae turned back to stare at the network of stone laid out in front of him. From looking at it, he was getting a better idea of what to do. All the hexagons where they were meant to stand were linked to numerous marked ones, showing what they needed to have in common with the person on the other end, and of course, each of _those _people would be linked to several others as well. All in all, it formed a huge, complex spider web. One solitary hexagon near the back provided the link to the red switch.

As if that weren't enough, Echae could practically feel the electricity coursing through the ground beneath him. 

"Well," he said resignedly, "let's get this over with."

Taking a deep breath, he leaned over the grid and cautiously put a foot down.

Nothing happened.

"Told ya," Bruno said smugly.

"Well, that was thrilling," said Tyscene. "Now we just need to avoid getting shocked _and _solve a ridiculous puzzle."

"This won't be so bad, Tyscene," Echae assured her as a few more intrepid Zoombinis inched out onto a safe hexagon. "It's just like on Captain Cajun's ferry, except a little more. . . uh. . . dangerous."

Tyscene became visibly interested at that. "Yeah, you're right," she realized. "And since I got us through _that_, I should be able to get us through this too."

"Uh, no, that's not what I – "

"All right everybody, listen up!" Tyscene barked. "I want you all to move to the very back where the switch is, and we'll build up from there! Let's move it!"

"Bruno, smack me. I deserve it," Echae muttered.

Everyone grudgingly obeyed Tyscene. One by one, they carefully edged across the grid, only able to follow the paths that were safe, often losing their balance and coming within an inch of getting shocked. After a while they were all gathered near the back, most of them crowding two or three to a space.

"Okay, Echae, you stand on this one," Tyscene ordered, gesturing at the hexagon linked directly to the switch, as well as to three others. "We need two Zoombinis that match your eyes and one that matches your nose, and we can do that. So you should be there."

"Yeah, okay," Echae sighed, nudging past the others and carefully inching his way onto the hexagon. 

He was completely unprepared for what happened next. The instant he put his foot down, the hexagon turned the same bright red color as the switch, and what sounded like a loud grinding noise erupted from beneath it. Echae nearly jumped out of his skin.

"W-was that supposed to happen?" he asked Bruno.

"That just means you connected to the switch," the marsh fairy replied. He was hovering a few inches above their heads. "Keep going."

Impatient to get going, Tyscene called out three more members of the group. "Okay, you guys, each of you get on one of the spaces Echae's connected to."

Each of them did as they were told, and just as Echae had feared, there were three loud grinding noises in succession as they stepped into place. Their hexagons, as well as the marked ones between each of them and Echae, turned red.

"Ah, this'll be a cinch," Tyscene said confidently. 

"Not on my ears," Echae groaned.

Tyscene spent the next several minutes organizing the Zoombinis into the proper places. Every time she did, another group of hexagons would turn red, along with the painfully loud noise that told them the current was being passed along. Bruno occasionally had to float along behind her, as he had a bird's-eye view of the grid layout and could easily see which Zoombinis needed to be linked by which feature.

"Hmm. . . she's good," the fairy remarked as he flew back over to Echae.

"Just don't tell her that. You'll never hear the end of it."

"Okay, everyone!" Tyscene announced a while later. Every Zoombini except for her was standing on top of a red hexagon. "We're finished! Looks like I single-handedly got us through once again! You can thank me later."

"I see what you mean," Bruno said to Echae.

"And now, as I take my place, this puzzle will officially be _beaten!_" she declared proudly. With that, she rolled onto the last remaining hexagon in the web. . .

. . .and nothing happened.

"What the – " Tyscene looked down at the hexagon. It was still gray. "What's wrong with this thing?"

"Tyscene. . . ." said one of the Zoombinis adjacent to her, "the symbol in between us says our hair has to be the same. And it isn't."

"What? How could I have missed that?"

"Tyscene, it's not that big a deal," said Weiswyo.

"Not a big deal? Unless I can get connected I'll be stuck in this ditch forever!"

"How about the _rest _of us just go?" Echae suggested, half seriously.

"Uh, it doesn't work like that," Bruno replied as he shook his head. "The switch won't turn on until you close the circuit. You _all _gotta be in the right place."

"Fine. I'll just fix it then," Tyscene grumbled. "Somebody else come stand here, and I'll stand over there. . . ."

As the Zoombinis shuffled around according to her directions, the hexagons they deserted immediately turned back from red to gray. They also emitted a grinding noise, but it sounded different, like it was winding down to nothing.

"There! Perfect!" Tyscene affirmed once she was in her new place, just a few spaces down from Echae. But it very clearly was not perfect – several more hexagons were now disconnected, and the Zoombinis standing on them were plainly worried.

"What's going on here?" Tyscene cried as she realized this. "Okay, okay. . . let me think. . . ." She turned to two Zoombinis next to her. "Why don't you two switch places. . . ."

They did as they were told, and an entire section of the grid was shut off.

"Tyscene, you're just making it worse!" Echae snapped. "You had your chance. Let somebody else figure it out."

"No! This is _my _job!" Tyscene cried desperately. "I'm in charge! It's my responsibility to – "

"Oh, _get real!_" Echae shouted at her, well aware he had just earned the stares of everyone present. He had put up with her for this long as best he could, but it was getting to be too much. Her ego, her selfishness, and her cruelty had finally worn down his patience.

"Look, Tyscene, just because you feel the need to boss everybody around all the time does _not _automatically make you in charge! And you are _not _the smartest one here! You're not the only one capable of solving puzzles! Anyone else here could do it just as well as you!"

Tyscene looked at him with a mixture of shock and fury. "Shut up! You're wrong!" she countered. "This puzzle is impossible! If _I _can't do it, nobody else can!"

"Well, actually. . ." Iake observed, "I think I see a way to fix it."

Tyscene swiveled her head around to glare at him. "_What?_"

"Yeah! So do I," Weiswyo agreed. "Tyscene, you and I are the only two people here who have wheels, and there's only one symbol with a foot on it. I think we're supposed to stand over there." 

"Oh shut up, Weiswyo, there's no way you could – "

"Let's just try it, okay?" he pleaded. "I think once we're both in the right place, we'll be able to fill everyone else in accordingly."

Tyscene sighed. "Fine. Just to prove you're both wrong."

Several Zoombinis began shuffling around accordingly, with Echae watching the scene in surprise, and, he realized, delight.

"Do you guys need us to move at all?" he offered.

"No, Echae, I think you're fine," said Iake. "We just need to move all these guys over here, and. . . yeah! We got it!"

Echae grimaced as a chorus of grinding sounds erupted from the ground, but opened his eyes and smiled as he saw that everyone's hexagon had turned red. Every Zoombini in the group was connected. Before anyone could celebrate, though, the switch right behind Echae made a low buzzing noise.

"_Woah!_" Echae yelped, nearly losing his balance and toppling over as he shot up into the air. Looking back, he saw that all the Zoombinis were now level with the grassy ledge, and looking down, he realized it was because the hexagons they were standing on weren't just spaces at all: they were platforms, several feet tall. They had been underground, but with the activation of the switch, they had all risen up, elevating the Zoombinis to safety.

"All _right! _We're outta here!" Echae cheered as he skated off onto the grass, everyone else close behind him. As they all reached solid ground, everyone either started cheering and dancing around or collapsed in relief. Several people were gathering around Iake and Weiswyo and giving them grateful nudges.

"Nice job, you guys," Bruno said with a smile. "I had a feeling you'd figure it out."

"Well, we couldn't've done it without you," Echae replied respectfully.

"Shade Tree is less than two days from here, I'd say," the marsh fairy announced as he flew over to the rest of the group. "Just keep following the path and you'll make it in no time."

"_Finally_," Iake sighed. "I miss having food."

"Just to warn you, though, you might not be alone. Shade Tree's a real popular place. All the roads lead to it eventually. Everybody lucky enough to make it through the forest in one piece usually stays there for days."

"Well, I can understand – wait – the _forest?_" Echae jumped in surprise. "You – you mean the southern forest? Where the Fleens live?"

"Better known as the Deep, Dark Forest, but yeah, it's that one."

"That means the other guys will be there too!" Echae whooped in joy, leaping into the air and then spinning around. "I'm gonna see Sae again!"

"That's _assuming _they made it," the Zoombini with glasses reminded him, but Echae was too excited to listen. 

"Wait – you mean there's another group of you guys going through the forest?" Bruno asked, scratching his head with his wand. "You never mentioned that."

"I guess we didn't think it was important," Echae admitted once he had calmed down a little. Suddenly an idea hit him. "Bruno, do you think maybe you could look for them and help them out too? I can only imagine how much trouble they might be in."

Bruno looked dejected. "You want me to leave already?"

"No! It's not that, I mean, you helped us out a lot. But if all we have to do now is walk to Shade Tree, well, I think we can handle that. The forest is a lot more dangerous."

"Well. . . ." Bruno folded his arms and thought, looking very uneasy. "Well, I dunno. . . ."

"I think Echae's right, Bruno," Iake said as he bounced up to them. "Our friends might need you."

"You're not worried about the Fleens, are you?" asked Echae. "Don't worry, I'm sure _you _can handle them."

Not for the first time, Echae was getting the feeling that Bruno wasn't telling them everything. For a moment the marsh fairy simply wrung his wand nervously in his hands, gazing at the ground with fear in his eyes. Finally, though, he looked back up at the Zoombinis.

"Okay, I'll do it. Even if they got past the Fleens, they're gonna need help with Mudball Wall."

Echae smiled. "Thanks Bruno. You're the greatest."

"Will we ever see you again?" asked the ponytailed Zoombini.

"Are you kidding? Once you guys build that new city of yours, I'll come visit every day."

"Sounds great," said Weiswyo.

Bruno turned and looked up at the sky. "Well, if I'm gonna go, I guess I'd better do it now," he said to himself. Without another word, he launched himself into the sky, circling around momentarily to wave at the Zoombinis as they gathered underneath him.

"Bye Bruno! Good luck! See you later!" Echae and the others called up as he flew off and finally vanished from sight.

"I'll kinda miss him," Iake said once he was gone. "Even if he did dress like a girl."

Echae expected Tyscene to make some sort of snide remark at that, but she was silent.

"Well, guys, let's get going," he said, realizing Tyscene wouldn't be giving any orders. Everyone gladly set off along with him as the group made its way down the path toward Shade Tree. 

For a while, all Echae could think about was the prospect of seeing Saetwo again after so long, and he could hardly contain his joy. That was fixed the minute he noticed Tyscene rolling past him. Realizing how quiet she had been, he shot her a concerned look. Tyscene glanced at him as well, and as she realized he was looking back at her, a furious look crossed her face. She looked away and quickly pulled ahead.

Echae was shocked. Was it just him, or were there tears in her eye?

"Echae, man," muttered a red-nosed Zoombini next to him, "it looks like you really hurt her feelings."

Normally Echae would have made some kind of quip about Tyscene not having any feelings, but he was just too confused.

"Well I didn't mean to," he insisted, starting to feel guilty. "Since when does she care what I think anyway?" 

**-----**

**A/N: **Blah. . . this is kind of a boring puzzle, and not very easy to turn into an interesting chapter. Also, please forgive me and my total lack of knowledge about circuits. My physics teacher is probably in physical pain right now. Bear with me, 'kay? Mudball Wall will be awexome. 


	18. Mud Slinging

**A/N: **Oooh, I'm so excited I finally got to this chapter. I think it's the most important one since, well, ever. All the questions you've had. . . this is when they get answered. And let me just say, there's going to be absolutely no filler from here on out.

--

Saetwo and the others hadn't thought there could ever be a host as good as Ulla. The morning after their stay at the hotel, the squirrel treated them all to a heaping continental breakfast of pancakes and scrambled eggs, and after that, the Zoombinis were allowed to sit in on a live performance from her band. Saetwo in particular was thrilled by the whole thing.

"That was some amazing concert, don't you think?" she asked Conneda afterward.

"WHAT?? I CAN'T HEAR YOU!!" he shouted back.

"Then next time don't sit directly in front of the percussion section," Touli advised.

Later, the Zoombinis were all gathered in front of the hotel and getting ready to go when Ulla came around front to meet them.

"Well, I certainly wish you all could stay longer," she sighed. "But the fact is, our tour starts today and we just can't wait."

"It's okay, Ulla. We have to get going anyway," said Saetwo. "Although we don't really know what we're looking for."

"Well there's not much I can do about that. But I can tell you that, if you just keep following the path for a few more days, you'll be out of this forest in no time. And from there it's just a hop and a skip over to Shade Tree."

"Really?" Saetwo's eyes lit up. "That's fantastic!"

"That sounds like just another rest stop," Xekrai objected. "What comes _after _Shade Tree?"

Ulla narrowed her eyes at him. "Why do you need to know that?"

"We're looking for a new home, that's why. A _real _home."

Ulla just shook her head at that, wearing the most serious expression the Zoombinis had seen on her thus far. "Well, you're not going to find it past Shade Tree, I promise you that. It's way too dangerous for you kids."

"What?" Saetwo persisted. "What is?"

"The Mountains," Ulla replied simply. "Trust me, darlings, you're not going to find your home anywhere around there. Nobody ever goes into the Mountains."

Naturally everyone grew curious upon hearing this, but Ulla refused to tell them anything else, only assuring them that the safest thing was to stay as far away as possible. Finally they decided they had gotten everything they were going to get out of her, and so, bidding the squirrel a very fond farewell, the group set off through the forest once again.

--

Although nothing eventful happened for the next several days, the constant fear of being attacked by the Fleens again drove the Zoombinis on. Saetwo especially was worried for a good portion of the journey. She couldn't shake off the feeling of dread she had gotten from facing Romelau, and how he had chosen to attack _her _and nobody else. And now that she had beaten him, she had no doubt in her mind that he would be after revenge. . . .

--

"Oh, great. What the heck is _this _thing?"

Xekrai had been marching ahead of the rest of the group, as usual, and has just jerked to a stop at the edge of what looked like a shallow little pond.

"Huh? What thing?" asked Uloobu, flying up behind him along with Saetwo and the others. Just as Ulla had said, the forest had finally thinned out and the Zoombinis had a clear view of the sky for the first time in ages, but any sense of relief this had caused among the group quickly vanished.

"_That _thing," Xekrai replied grimly.

The group was staring at a massive stone wall, seated on a little ledge that rose up out of the pond. It was divided into dozens of smaller, rectangular sections, five high by twenty-five across. Underneath it were three small wooden planks that were resting on boulders sticking out of the water.

"We can't _ever _have a normal day, can we?" Touli sighed.

"I wonder what this thing is for?" remarked Saetwo, flying up to the wall and getting a good look at it. A few sections were lighter in color and had dots on them, which made about as much sense as the rest of it.

Uloobu flew up next to her. "Well, it looks like we need to get over it somehow. The path keeps going above it."

Saetwo saw he was right. Scaling the wall led up to solid ground where the path continued on above their heads. On the very edge, just above the top of the wall, were five short wooden chutes sticking out of the ground, whose purpose Saetwo couldn't begin to imagine.

"Well, that's easy for you and me," she said, "but how will we get the other guys up there?"

"I have no idea."

"I bet we use these things," said Conneda, who was balancing on one end of one of the planks. "They've got fulcrums. So they're like seesaws. We could _launch_ ourselves up."

"Hmm. . . ." Saetwo looked down at the planks. "That might actually work."

"Conneda, that may very well be the only intelligent thing you've ever said," said Xekrai, wading over to him. "Let's try it out."

Before Conneda could react, Xekrai leapt up and slammed down on the opposite end of the plank.

"WAAAAAUGH!!" Conneda screamed as he was hurled into air – and directly into the wall.

"Okay, that didn't work," Xekrai mused as Conneda plummeted into the pond.

"Xekrai, get serious," Saetwo scolded. "Nobody around here needs any head injuries. _Least _of all Conneda."

"And what does _that _mean?" the blue-nosed Zoombini demanded as he stuck his head out of the water.

Uloobu quickly changed the subject. "We just need to use something heavier. Like a boulder or something."

"Okay, but how are we going to get a _boulder _onto – "

Saetwo was cut off as she noticed something out of the corner of her eye.

"Woah. Guys. . . look up there."

Everyone followed her gaze and saw what she was looking at. Some kind of strange purple creature, sporting a set of buzzing, translucent wings, was spiraling out of the sky directly above them, and it seemed to have its eyes fixated on them.

"HEY! WAIT YOU GUYS! STAY RIGHT THERE!!" it shouted down.

"Who is _that?_" exclaimed Xekrai.

"I don't know," said Conneda, "but it looks like he's. . . COMING STRAIGHT AT US!!"

Saetwo, Uloobu, Xekrai and Conneda all screamed and scrambled out of the way just as the purple creature crashed into the pond, sending up an enormous splash and soaking everyone nearby.

"MY HAIR!!" Touli shrieked, several of the other female Zoombinis reacting likewise.

"Oh, I'm sorry we didn't protect your hair, Touli," Xekrai said impatiently. "We were all just worried about the big purple thing that just tried to kill us."

Suddenly, said purple thing emerged sputtering from the water and, with some effort, dragged himself up onto dry land. All the Zoombinis frantically backed away.

"Sorry 'bout that," he gasped. "I was just so tired after flying so long, I couldn't land very gracefully."

"Excuse me, but who _are _you?!" demanded Xekrai. "And why did you feel the urge to dive-bomb us like that?"

"Name's Bruno. Marsh fairy. Nice to meet you." He momentarily stopped wringing out his wings in order to hold out his hand to Xekrai. When he realized the Zoombini had nothing to shake it with, he awkwardly pulled it back in. "Uh. . . never mind."

"You're a fairy?" Saetwo asked cautiously. Once she had overcome her initial shock, what struck her the most about the newcomer was how incongruent his deep voice was with his overall appearance. "But you're a _guy _fairy?"

"Oh yeah. I'm all man."

"Your outfit says otherwise," Xekrai said with a malicious smirk.

"Hmm. . . ." Bruno narrowed his eyes at Xekrai. "You must be Tyscene's brother."

Xekrai nearly leapt backwards in shock. "How do you know Tyscene?!"

"I know her really well, trust me. She and your other friends send me after you guys."

Saetwo's heart jumped. "You mean the northern group? You met them?" she asked, hardly daring to believe it.

"Uh huh." Bruno turned his attention toward her. "And _you _must be Saetwo. Your friend Echae told me all about you."

Saetwo felt her face grow hot. "How is he? He hasn't gotten hurt, has he?"

"Well, geez, that's a weird thing to say. He was more concerned about _you _guys, walking right into the Fleens' home and all. Though you seem to have gotten through that okay."

"Thanks to Saetwo here," agreed Touli. "But we're kind of trying to get out of here fast so we don't have to worry about meeting them again."

"Well, that's probably – oh yeah! That's why I'm here!" Bruno suddenly remembered. "I was supposed to help you guys get past Mudball Wall!"

"Is that what this thing is called?" asked Saetwo. "Where's the _mud?_"

"Over here." Bruno picked himself up and flew over to something the Zoombinis hadn't noticed. Sitting on top of one of the boulders was a large, hollow glass bubble that was filled up with mud. Coming out of either side of the boulder was a thick, snaky tube; one end went into another, much bigger boulder, and the other end disappeared underwater, seemingly where the mud was being siphoned up.

"And this is supposed to help us get over the wall somehow?" asked Xekrai.

"You bet." Bruno flew over to the big boulder. "Look over _here_."

Everyone gathered around behind him to get a good view. Somehow, the flat back side of the boulder had a series of stone buttons sticking out of it, and each button had a picture on it. The top row had five different-colored drops – yellow, blue, green, red, and purple – the bottom row had five splotches of the same colors, and the middle row had the shapes of a square, triangle, star, oval, and diamond. On top of the boulder was a metal, satellite-shaped contraption that had a compact ball of mud sticking out of its top.

"What _is _all this?" asked Touli.

"_This _is the mudball machine. This is how you're gonna get over the wall. Allow me to demonstrate." He turned to face the Zoombinis. "Anyone want to volunteer?"

Everyone stared at him as if he were crazy.

The fairy rolled his eyes. "Fine. I guess you all just want to stay here."

Finally, after a moment of awkward silence, the orange-nosed Zoombini stepped forward. "I'll do it," she offered.

"Great. Go stand on that plank over there."

"Do we _trust _this guy?" Saetwo whispered as the orange-nosed Zoombini plodded through the water.

"He knows the other guys, doesn't he? He seems okay," Uloobu whispered back. "And anyway, do we really have a choice?"

"Okay, everybody, watch this," Bruno instructed once the Zoombini was standing on one end of the left plank. He thoughtfully examined the wall for a long time before experimentally pressing three of the stone buttons: the blue splotch, the red drop, and the triangle. As he did, a hinged metal slab next to the satellite swung onto the mudball, leaving the imprint of a triangle. At the same time, a glob of blue paint came bursting out of a stone spout next to the slab, covering the mudball, and a little dollop of red paint spurted out of a different spout, filling the triangle.

Xekrai raised an eyebrow. "So. . . you just made a paintball."

"Yep. Now check this out," said Bruno as he mashed an arrow-shaped button in the stone. The satellite tilted forward, and then, suddenly, the mudball was launched right at the wall, directly striking a space with one dot.

"I don't get it. How did – WOAH!"

Saetwo broke off as a large rock suddenly came flying out of one of the chutes, slamming down on the opposite end of the plank. The Zoombini screamed as she was sent flying directly over the wall, landing on the ground above with a thud, dazed but safe.

Bruno turned back to the others. "So, whaddaya think?"

Everyone was silent for a moment.

"That. . . was. . . AWESOME!!" Conneda exclaimed.

"_I _get it now," Saetwo realized. "Hitting one of those spaces with dots on it will launch those boulders, and they'll get us over the wall!"

Uloobu still looked confused. "So, you mean, the mudball machine already _knows _where to send all the different mudballs?"

"You got it," Bruno confirmed. "All the different color and shape combinations are gonna go in preconfigured places. You just gotta figure out where those are. Any other questions?"

"Yeah, I got one," said Xekrai. "What's the _point _of this thing?!"

"It's a test. Everybody who wants to go to Shade Tree has to prove themselves. Which means I can help, but really you've gotta do this yourselves. Think you guys can handle that?"

"I think so," said Saetwo. "If it's just another puzzle, we can definitely figure it out."

By silent agreement, she, Uloobu, and Xekrai all gathered around the controls of the machine. The satellite had reset itself, and now the tubes began pumping a new supply of mud from the bubble into the machine. A new mudball popped up in place, and within seconds it had been given the same shape and colors as the previous one.

"So, we just have to hit all the spaces with dots on them?" said Uloobu.

"And I think we can figure out how," Saetwo replied. "Mudball Wall is like some kind of chart, just like the hotel. All the shapes go in different rows and all the colors go in different columns, or something like that."

"This is a step up from the hotel," Xekrai said matter-of-factly. "We're dealing with _three _dimensions, not just two."

"Um. . . excuse me. . . what should the _rest _of us be doing right now?" Conneda cut in awkwardly.

"You guys go stand on the planks. We'll launch you up," said Saetwo. Conneda looked uneasy, but finally he and two others wandered over to the planks and clambered on top. All the other Zoombinis went back to the shore to wait in line.

"Now, two of the spaces we want to hit are in the same column as that first one," Saetwo said knowledgeably to the other two. "Which means the mudballs are going to have two things in common with the first one. Why don't we try changing the shape?"

Uloobu obediently pushed the star button on the machine, and the metal slab swung onto the mudball and changed the imprint to an identical star. Xekrai pushed the arrow button, and the satellite lowered once again. . . and fired the mudball onto a space clear across the wall.

"Guess not," said Uloobu. "Maybe we should change the inside color instead."

"And let's try and not mess this up anymore, you guys," Xekrai sighed. "In case you didn't notice, we only have so much mud."

Saetwo had taken notice of that. Every time the machine made a new mudball, it pumped a large amount of mud out of the glass bubble, lowering the level noticeably.

Xekrai jammed the appropriate buttons so that the mudball was now purple with a red triangle. Then he pressed the arrow button, and the mudball fired at the wall and hit a three-dotted space above the first one.

"All _right! _Way to go, guys!" Saetwo cheered.

"Huh? What happ – AAAAAAAHHH!!" Conneda cried out as a rock launched out of the chute directly above him, crashing down on the other end of the plank and catapulting him clear over the wall. Then two more rocks flew out of their respective chutes and the two other Zoombinis were sent flying the same way. After a moment, all three of them lay in a dazed heap on the ground above the wall. Now that all their planks were empty, three more Zoombinis scrambled over to take their place.

"That looks like fun!" Saetwo laughed. "Come on, you guys, let's keep going."

Using what they had just learned, the trio changed the next mudball to be green, and when they launched it, it smacked clear into a space with two dots.

"WHEEEEEE!!" Touli cheered as she and another Zoombini went sailing over the wall, landing safely with the others.

"Okay, the next part won't be so easy," Saetwo mused. We have to get the next mudball into a different _row _from the first one, but not column."

"Well, there's only so many things we can change," Uloobu reminded her. "Let's just give it a different inside color."

After a few attempts, they successfully hit another marked space using a blue mudball with a yellow triangle. Two more Zoombinis went soaring, and Saetwo started laughing all over again.

"This is really an amazing machine," she said. "It almost seems like something we would have back at home."

"Get nostalgic later, Saetwo," Xekrai grumbled. "We still have to figure out where all the _other _mudballs go."

"Well, let's try giving it a different center. I think that'll work."

Unfortunately, the next mudball they made, with an oval shape, went flying onto a space just down the row from their first attempt – not where Saetwo had expected it to go at all.

"Huh?" Saetwo was startled. "What was that about? I thought the inside color said what row it was in, not shape!"

"Saetwo, don't worry. Let's just try again," Uloobu assured her. But their next mudball, which had a diamond center, did the same thing, splattering onto a space at the other end of the row.

Saetwo was baffled. How could the columns be determined by one thing, but the rows be determined by two _different _things?

"Saetwo, what's the matter?" Uloobu asked in concern.

"I. . . I don't get it," she said helplessly, shaking her head. "I thought I had this all figured out, but. . . I don't understand how the rows work at all. And we're running out of mud."

She turned helplessly to Bruno, who had been watching them this whole time. "Bruno, do you know how to do it?"

"Yeah. But this is your guys' test. You have to figure it out."

"But that's not _fair!_" she protested. "Why _can't _you help us?! Do you have any idea how much we've all had to go through by ourselves? We need all the help we can get!!"

The marsh fairy looked alarmed by her outburst. "Hey, calm down," he pleaded. "You don't have to get all worked up. I _know_ you can do it. Didn't you say you've been to the Hotel Dimensia?"

"Yeah."

"Well, it's just like that."

"No it's not. Back there we only had to worry about two things, not three."

"So what? That doesn't change anything. Xekrai already said it: you're working in three dimensions. Height, width, and depth."

"But I don't – "

"Look at the wall again, Saetwo."

Reluctantly, she did as Bruno asked. Examining the wall carefully, she tried to look for any pattern, any hint she might have missed. Their first few attempts were scattered all over, but she was only interested in the one row. Now that she looked at it, she noticed all the blue mudballs with different-colored triangles were clustered together in one small area, while the last few mudballs they had made – blue, red insides, but with different shapes – were far more spaced out.

In fact, they were all separated by the exact same distance. They were all five spaces apart. . . .

And there was something else she hadn't noticed. After every fifth column, there was a thick line that separated it from the next one. Almost as if the whole wall was divided into five. . . .

"I _got _it!" Saetwo gasped. "It's like we're working with five _different _hotels! All the inside colors go in a different column, and all the outside colors go in a different row – but there aren't _five _different rows, there's _twenty-five! _The whole wall is split up in five different sections, and a different shape goes in each one!!"

Bruno smiled at her. "You got it!"

"What? Well, _we _don't!" Xekrai protested. "Saetwo, every time you have an epiphany I can't understand what the heck you're saying."

"Okay, guys," Saetwo tried to explain. "We've basically got five different walls here, not one big one. Each of them has five rows and five columns. And in all five walls, all the blue mudballs go on the far left column, and all the ones with red centers go in the second row, and so on like that. That's why when we only changed the _center_, they all went in the same _big _row. Because they each went in the exact same place in their corresponding part of the wall. Second row, first column. See what I mean?"

Uloobu stared at the wall for a good long time before realization seemed to hit him. "Oh, I see it now! You're right, Saetwo! Way to figure it out!"

"Yeah, way to go," muttered Xekrai, who was obviously still clueless about what she meant.

"Well, now we know what to do," Saetwo said in relief. "See that purple mudball with a red triangle? There's a marked space down the wall in the exact same spot, but it's where all the ovals go."

Sure enough, when they launched the purple mudball with a red oval, three more Zoombinis flew over the wall, and as Saetwo and Uloobu followed their logic, one more quickly joined them.

"Your turn, Xekrai," Saetwo said mischievously. The three of them were the only ones left.

"What?! Oh – _fine_," said Xekrai, exhaling violently as he trudged across the pond and stepped onto a plank.

"Okay, Uloobu. Green mudball, blue star," Saetwo ordered. Uloobu pressed the according buttons, and in an instant, Xekrai too was thrown over the wall to join the rest of the group.

"_All right! _We did it, Saetwo!" Uloobu cheered, flying in circles around her.

Saetwo was still looking at the machine. "You know," she said with a malicious grin, "we still have enough mud to make one more mudball. . . ."

Uloobu looked confused at first, but after a moment an identical grin spread across his face.

"Hey Xekrai – _heads up!_" Saetwo called, aiming the satellite up as Uloobu pressed the arrow button.

From on top of the wall, Xekrai turned around. "What? What'd you – oh no."

He didn't have time to react.

_WHAM! _Xekrai was hurled backwards, slamming into a tree and sliding to the ground. He had been hit squarely in the face with a paint-covered mudball.

Saetwo and Uloobu doubled over in hysterics, as did every other Zoombini. The now-green Xekrai sat up, absolutely fuming, but everyone was laughing too hard to notice or care. As Saetwo and Uloobu finally gained the composure to fly up and join the others, Bruno followed after them.

"See? I told you guys you could do it," he said, folding his arms. "You Zoombini kids are a smart group, lemme tell ya."

Saetwo was still giggling a little. "Well, Bruno, we never would have figured it out if you hadn't been here!"

Bruno looked a little uneasy at that. "Well, it was nothing, really."

"Ah, don't be so modest," Uloobu said good-naturedly. "It's clear sailing to Shade Tree now, thanks to you."

"Yeah, and didn't you say the other guys sent you to find us? Did you help them too?" asked Touli.

"Well, yeah, I guess I did. . . ."

"Wow, Bruno, I can't believe you'd go out of your way to help us all out like that," Saetwo remarked fondly. "I think you're the nicest person we've met here so far. We really owe you one."

And that was when Bruno did something that Saetwo would never in her life have expected him to do. He burst into tears.

"Bruno!" she cried. "I – what's the matter? Did I say something bad?"

"Stop it, stop it, _stop _it!!" the fairy moaned, sinking into a sitting position as he continued to sob. "Stop saying all that stuff about me! I can't _take _it anymore!!"

Saetwo was dumbfounded.

"But we were _complimenting _you!" said Touli.

"I don't _deserve _it!!" Bruno insisted, rubbing his arm over his eyes. Saetwo and the others could only look at each other in confusion and fear as he attempted to regain control.

"Okay. You want to know the _real _reason I've been helping all of you?" he asked after a moment, tears still flowing freely down his face. "I'm _guilty_. Everything bad that's happened to you guys is my fault!"

Saetwo furrowed her brow at him. "What are you _talking _about? It was the Fleens and the Bloats, not you!"

"Yeah, I _know _it was the Fleens!" Bruno cried. "Because I _helped _them!!"

A collective gasp went up among the Zoombinis. Saetwo thought she felt the bottom drop out of her stomach.

"Is that true?" she asked coldly.

"I didn't know what I was doing, I swear!" Bruno insisted. He was starting to sob again. "I had no idea – I only just found out a week ago, from your friends, what happened to you – what the Fleens did to your home – oh, I'm _sorry! _If only I knew better!"

No one said anything. There was nothing that could be said. Saetwo just stared at him, feeling her head begin to spin. Their home was destroyed – she and Echae were separated – her _mother was dead – _all because of him?

She was ready to scream at him. But she didn't get the chance.

"It's okay, Bruno," said Uloobu.

Everyone stared at him as he flew forward.

"I believe you. I know you wouldn't want to hurt us," he went on earnestly. "The Fleens just got the better of you. They do that to everybody. But why don't you tell us what happened, exactly?"

Looking at Uloobu, Saetwo suddenly felt an enormous rush of admiration toward him. All her anger quickly melted away. She could hardly believe she used to find him annoying and useless.

"Well, okay," Bruno sniffed. "A few months ago I guess, I wanted to take a break from the marsh, so I just went to the forest to look around, and then the Fleens captured me." He shuddered at the memory. "They were _freaky_. And their leader, Romelau, he threatened to kill me for trespassing."

Saetwo sighed. So Romelau wasn't just vicious towards Zoombinis. He was really that bad.

"But then he said. . . he said that he and the Fleens had some kind of plan going on. A big plan. And they wouldn't kill me if I agreed to help them out. They were getting revenge on some people who had betrayed them."

"He meant _us_," Conneda said glumly.

"Yeah. Whatever you guys did, I'm sure you had a reason. You can't trust those Fleens." Bruno wiped his eyes before going on. "But I helped them anyway. I didn't have a choice."

"What did they make you do?" asked Uloobu.

"They had me carry a message," Bruno replied. "To a little island across the ocean."

"Zoombini Isle," said Saetwo.

"Yeah. I can fly, so I was perfect for the job, I guess. I got there in just a few days."

Saetwo felt a cold dread building up inside of her. Finally, after all this time, the Zoombinis were finding out the truth about the invasion, and how the Fleens' plan for revenge had come to fruition.

"Well. . . what did the message say?" she asked, fearing the answer, but knowing she had to find out.

"What did it say. . . I read it myself," Bruno mused for a moment. "It was like. . . 'We have told the Bloats about your island. In one week they will be invading. If you remain silent, feign ignorance, and convince the others to trust them, then your life will be spared. Respond and tell us if you agree to this arrangement.'" The fairy looked anxiously at them. "All they wanted was a simple answer. Yes or no."

Nobody dared to speak. Saetwo's blood was running cold. She could barely bring herself to ask the last question, the most important thing they needed to know. But she had to do it.

"Bruno. . . who was that message for?" she asked in a low voice, almost a whisper. "Who did you give it to?"

Even as she asked, she felt her eyes straying over to Xekrai, who had been silent this entire time. He was staring at Bruno in abject horror. He already knew the answer. So did she.

"He said. . . his name was Iadwi. . . Mayor of Zoombini Isle," Bruno said softly. "And his answer was yes."


	19. Siblings' Rivalries

**A/N: **So, here's the deal. I really really want to finish this before I go back to school in September, and since I still have like ten chapters left, from now on I'm going to be updating more often. Deal? Deal.

--

So excited was the group at the prospect of arriving at Shade Tree that they traveled well into the night, hours longer than they usually did. When the moon had reached its peak and there was still no sign that they were close, they finally settled down for the night.

They had left the marshes behind a long time ago, and were now stretching out and relaxing on the slope of a large grassy hill under the stars. Echae couldn't have been happier about the change in the scenery, but still wasn't feeling as lively as he should have been. Tyscene hadn't cheered up at all, and, as much as he didn't want to admit it, it was starting to worry him.

_People get angry at her all the time, and she doesn't care, _he thought. _Why is this time so different?_

As he pondered this, he suddenly noticed Iake and Weiswyo wandering past him, looking for a place to lay down. Echae quickly remembered something else that had been on his mind. He wanted to talk to them.

"Hey – guys?" he said cautiously, coming up behind them. They both turned around.

"Hey Echae. What's up?" asked Iake.

"Listen, you guys – you did a really good job solving the puzzle back there," Echae said earnestly. "You should really be proud of yourselves."

The two of them glanced at each other. "Oh, well, it was no big deal, really," said Iake.

"Sure it was. Not everybody can do that, you know. I didn't think you guys had it in you."

"Neither did we," Weiswyo admitted. "Really, we're not that smart."

Echae looked surprised. "Says who?"

"Says boss – I mean, Xekrai."

Echae groaned and rolled his eyes. "Oh, _come on_. You guys believe _him? _You know full well he never has a good word to say about anybody."

"Yeah, we know," Weiswyo assured him. "But he is right about us."

Echae didn't know what to say.

"Xekrai may kinda be a jerk sometimes," Iake went on, "but he still knows what he's talking about. He's smart and capable."

"What, so that means you guys _can't _be?"

"Well, we're not. Not compared to him."

Echae was stunned. Had Xekrai really managed to convince these two that they were so worthless compared to him? Had he affected their view of themselves so drastically?

"Okay, listen. Have either of you ever been told you were stupid by anybody but Xekrai?"

Iake gave him a funny look. "Uh, yeah. Tyscene?"

"Okay, she doesn't count."

Xekrai's two lackeys looked thoughtfully at each other, seemingly at a complete loss for words. They couldn't answer Echae's question.

"You know what I think?" Echae went on, sensing he was making progress. "I think Xekrai's jealous of you two."

Both of them stared at Echae. "What do you mean?!" Weiswyo exclaimed.

"Well, obviously if you two are going to be following him around, he can't have you showing him up and figuring things out that he can't. He's in charge. He has to be the best. But he could tell you two were equal to him, so he just _talked _it out of you."

To say nothing of the looks of shock on Iake and Weiswyo's faces, Echae himself was growing surprised by his own words. Hearing himself talk, he realized that these two weren't really on Xekrai's side at all. They had suffered from him. They were just like Uloobu. The only difference was that they had chosen to align themselves with him, and Uloobu hadn't.

"It seems to me," he concluded, "that you would be a lot better off _without _him."

Nobody said anything after that. It didn't matter. Echae couldn't think of anything that could be said in response to that anyway. This wasn't something that could be resolved in just one night.

"Well, anyway. . . g'night, you guys," he said awkwardly before pulling away.

--

He didn't sleep very well that night. He woke up several times, and when that didn't happen he had a series of discomforting dreams. Many of them had Fleens, although he had no idea what they looked like; but the one he remembered the most clearly had Saetwo. She was hovering alone, by herself, looking sad, and when he tried to hurry over to her she turned around and flew away, disappearing into the shadows. . . .

When he woke up for good, it was dawn, and there was still hardly any light in the sky. Everyone else was still asleep – except for one person. Echae strained his eyes and made out Tyscene standing by herself in the middle of the valley below the hill, almost too far away to see.

_Okay, this is just getting silly, _he thought to himself impatiently. He hadn't meant to hurt her feelings so badly, but he resentfully realized that, since he had, it was his job to apologize.

He slowly skated down the hill and over to where she was standing, wondering what exactly he was supposed to say.

"Um. . . Tyscene?" he ventured as he approached her.

Tyscene turned around, glared at him, and turned away again. "What do you want?"

"Why are you up so early?"

"Why are _you?_"

Echae sighed. There was no way to do this painlessly, so he might as well get it over with. "Listen, Tyscene. . . I really didn't mean to hurt your feelings yesterday. So. . . I'm sorry, I guess."

Tyscene snorted. "You _guess?_ Real convincing there."

Echae felt a familiar prick of annoyance. "Well, you know, it would be a lot easier for me to apologize if you weren't such a jerk," he said defensively. "And I still stand by what I said. You're not in charge because you're _not _the best. Everybody in this group has something to contribute."

"Oh please. Most of the Zoombinis here are just brainless idiots who do nothing but take up space. We never would have made it this far if it hadn't been for me."

"Oh, so Weiswyo and Iake didn't do anything? Or Bruno? Or – "

He cut himself off before he could finish. It would sound selfish. But Tyscene knew what he was going to say anyway.

"No, not you either! All you do all day is talk about your stupid little girlfriend!"

Echae felt his temperature rising. "Sae's not my girlfriend! And anyway, even if she were, what does it matter to _you?_"

"Oh, _come on!_" Tyscene cried, only just now turning to face him. She didn't sound angry anymore, but desperate. "You haven't figured it out?"

Echae just stared at her for a moment, not understanding what she meant – and then he felt his stomach clench itself into a piercing knot.

"Wait – you mean – "

"And here I thought you were _smart,_" Tyscene said bitterly, turning away from him again. "But yeah. I. . . I like you, Echae."

Echae was too shocked to say anything. He felt dizzy. He felt sick. How could this be? She couldn't possibly be serious – could she?

"And I thought _maybe_, with Saetwo not around, you might start to like me back," she went on. "But after yesterday, I guess I know how you really feel about me."

Then Echae lost it.

"Well of _course _I don't like you!!" he exploded, overcome with a fury and exasperation he had never felt before. It was worse than yesterday. It was worse than _ever_. "Tyscene, there's not a single likeable thing _about _you! You're a selfish, overbearing, egocentric – _gah!! _Don't you _realize _how much people hate you?! How hard you make it for everybody? For crying out loud, Tyscene, you hurt Uloobu so much he had to _leave the group!!_"

"And you're _mad _about that?" she exclaimed. "You _care _about him?!"

"Uloobu's a better Zoombini than you'll _ever _be!" he shot back. "And if anything has happened – if the Fleens did _anything _to him, all because you _made _him go that way, then it'll be on _your _head!"

Tyscene just glared at him, but without the anger she usually had. As Echae passed judgment on her, all her confidence and self-assuredness slowly faded away.

"Honestly. You and your brother are the two most despicable Zoombinis I've ever met!" Echae finally concluded, running out of things to say. "There's no way I'd _ever _like you!!"

And with that, he spun around and stormed away, unable to bear even looking at her anymore. But he didn't go back up the hill. He couldn't handle being with the others at that point. He was too angry, too confused. He had to be alone.

After a few minutes, he finally slowed down and came to a stop, completely alone in the valley. Now that he was by himself he finally began to calm down, and he thought about what he had just said to Tyscene. And suddenly, he felt a horrible surge of guilt.

He had meant every word he said – but he had never lost control like that before. He remembered how furious he had been just those few minutes ago, and it scared him. Everyone had always called him the nice one, the dependable one – and now he had just blown up in somebody's face. Had she really deserved that? Or was he now no better than she was?

"Sae. . . I'm so confused," he moaned, sinking into a sitting position. "This was all so much easier when you were here. . . oh, Sae, what's _wrong _with me?"

He began to cry.

Tyscene was crying too. Nobody had ever spoken to her like that before, and she hated it. This was all Saetwo's fault – if only Echae would stop thinking about that stupid friend of his, then maybe she would have had a chance with him. . . .

But, no. . . what if it wasn't Saetwo? What if Echae really meant all of that? Did everybody really _hate _her? All she wanted was for people to respect her, to know that she was smart. Was that so bad? She wasn't really as bad as Xekrai, was she?

What if she was?

The two of them stayed where they were for a long time before going back to rejoin the group, staying as far away from each other as possible – and so they never knew that the other Zoombinis had woken up while they had been arguing with each other. Stunned, they had all gathered together to watch the two of them, but they were far out of earshot, and couldn't hear any of the violent words that were exchanged. All they could tell was that Echae and Tyscene were alone, close to each other, sharing a moment together in the pale light of dawn.


	20. Reunion

Understandably, no one in the group felt much like talking the next morning. The remainder of the journey to Shade Tree took place in awkward silence, with a Zoombini muttering something to another only very rarely.

Echae hated himself. This was largely his fault, of course. No one else besides Tyscene had a reason to be this quiet, so he could only assume the rest of the group had seen them fighting. He wondered what they thought of him now. Were they afraid of him? Was that why no one seemed to want to be near him?

He couldn't have been more relieved when midday arrived and a large, knotted tree slowly came into view from the distance.

"Guys! It's Shade Tree!" he exclaimed. "We're here! We made it!"

Everyone forgot about being quiet and began cheering as they raced toward the rest stop. As they came closer, they saw that the crown of the tree, which was low to the ground, held a massive wooden treehouse of sorts, which was composed of several rows of small cubbies. As with Shelter Rock, they were the perfect size for Zoombinis.

And that wasn't all they saw.

"The other group's here! They made it! They made it!!" cried Weiswyo.

Any thoughts of what had happened that morning were instantly pushed out of Echae's mind. He laughed as he skated toward Shade Tree, feeling his heart swell in joy. His old group, the friends he had left behind what felt like ages ago, was gathered around the campsite.

--

"Guys," Touli said cautiously from her perch on the roof of the treehouse, "I see some people coming. Fast."

Saetwo felt a stab of panic. "Is it the Fleens? Should we start running?"

"I don't think so. It's. . . ."

Touli broke off as her normally-drooping eyes grew wide.

"It's the other guys! The other guys are coming! Everybody get over here!!"

Everyone stopped what they were doing, whipped around and scrambled to get a look at where Touli was gesturing. Sure enough, sixteen round blue lumps had appeared in the distance and were hurtling toward them at breakneck speed.

"I can't believe it! They made it!" Saetwo cheered, unable to contain her excitement.

"Come on you guys, let's _go!_" Conneda exclaimed before racing off to meet the others. The rest of the group followed after him, and then all thirty-two Zoombinis were rushing toward each other, cheering and shouting names. Then they met, and the weeks of separation were finally ended.

All around, Zoombinis were pressing against each other and laughing, reunited with their friends for the first time since the ill-fated first escape. The air was filled with fantastical recounts of the groups' adventures, of all the friends they had made along the way – but most of all the Fleens, and how utterly relieved they were that everyone had made it past them unharmed.

Echae frantically looked around for Saetwo amid the chaos, but somebody else caught his attention. Out of the corner of his eye his noticed a Zoombini with a propeller and a somewhat lopsided gait, and he broke into a grin and turned to face him, knowing it couldn't be anybody else.

"Heya, Echae!" Uloobu said brightly.

"Ha ha! Where the heck have you _been_, buddy?" Echae laughed as the two of them Zoombini hugged.

The only ones not participating in the happy reunion were Xekrai and Tyscene. They both hanged back by the fringe, unnoticed by everyone. They were both completely miserable, though for entirely different reasons, and when they finally caught each other's eye, they barely acknowledged each other for one painful moment before turning away.

The entire group slowly made its way back to the campsite, talking excitedly all the way. The entire southern group seemed to want to talk to Echae, anxious to know what had happened to him since they had seen him last. He chatted with them for what felt like forever, filling them in on how he had run into the northern group and where their part of the adventure had taken them.

And then he noticed Saetwo.

She noticed him at the same time. She had been talking to one of her other friends when she stopped dead, turning to stare at him, wide-eyed. Neither of them said a thing. They had been waiting for this moment for so long, and now that it was finally here, they had no idea what to do.

Seeming to understand, the others slowly pulled away as they approached each other.

"Uh. . . ."

"Hi."

"Hi."

"Are you okay?" Saetwo asked anxiously, with the familiar feeling of guilt.

"I'm fine. You?"

"I'm okay."

They stared at the ground for a moment.

"Listen, I – "

"Sae, that Pizza Troll thing wasn't your fault. Don't start blaming yourself."

"But it _was _my fault. If I'd just listened to Xekrai. . . ."

"Well, it doesn't matter. Actually, it was a good thing. The other guys kind of needed my help anyway. And I was able to send Bruno to help you guys."

"Yeah. He found us, all right," Saetwo muttered. She looked unhappy at the mention of his name, though Echae couldn't imagine why.

"And anyway, it sounds like Uloobu helped you guys out a lot."

"Yeah. He really did."

There was another awkward silence. Saetwo was feeling more and more miserable. She and Echae were finally together again. Why weren't they _happy?_

Well, it might have been because they had just found out the awful truth about the invasion. With a pang, she realized the northern group didn't know anything about that yet, nor did they know about Bruno's involvement. No one else had mentioned it yet, presumably because they didn't want to spoil the moment. Well, _their _moment couldn't get much more spoiled anyway. She might as well do it.

"Echae. . . there's something really important that I have to tell you," she blurted out.

Echae looked concerned. "What is it?"

"It's. . . it's. . . ." How was she supposed to break this? He was looking at her so innocently. . . how would he react when he found out that the one who had betrayed them was the Zoombini who was supposed to protect them at all costs?

"Echae, I don't know how to tell you this. . . ."

"Oh, this is just perfect," spat Tyscene, who was standing a few feet away and had apparently been observing this whole thing. Weiswyo and Iake were standing close by as well. "Let me guess – you're about to confess your undying love to him, aren't you? Well, congratulations. I hope you get a nice fairy tale ending."

"Lay off, Tyscene," Saetwo said sternly.

"Tyscene, I already told you about me and Sae," said Echae. "And no matter what you want, you're _not _changing that."

Saetwo turned to stare at him. "What do you mean by _that?_"

"Yeah, Echae, what _do _you mean?" asked Iake. "I mean, we all saw you and Tyscene this morning. We kinda figured you two were – "

"_What?!_" Saetwo and Echae both screamed – Saetwo at Echae, Echae at Iake.

"You and _Tyscene?!_" Saetwo cried.

"Iake, what are you _talking _about?!" Echae demanded.

"You two were talking together this morning, all by yourselves! We all saw it! We thought you two must have spent the night down there!"

Saetwo couldn't believe what she was hearing. Echae – her _best friend _Echae! How could he do this?

"Oh, that's _it!_" she snarled. "I've heard enough! Echae, I guess I know the truth about you now!"

"Sae, it's not like that at _all! _I swear!" Echae cried desperately, racing after her as she stormed off.

"Oh, really?" She whirled back around to face him. "How can I believe you? _Why _should I believe you?!"

"You honestly think I like _Tyscene? _I thought you knew me a lot better than that!"

"So did I! But I guess I was wrong!" she shouted at him, her eyes filling with angry tears. Time and time again she had envisioned the day when they would meet up again. This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. Not at all.

Echae was looking angry for the first time. "Well, maybe I don't know you either!" he snarled. "I was _going _to tell you about this morning – what Tyscene and I were _talking _about is how much I _hate_ her! But maybe you're not even worth the explanation!"

"I don't _care _what explanation you have! I'm sure it's just a dirty _lie!!_"

Everyone was staring at them by now, too frightened to intervene. Of all the Zoombinis in the world to be fighting, it was Saetwo and Echae? It wasn't possible.

Saetwo knew she had everyone's attention, and didn't care. She wanted everyone to hear what she had to say.

"Oh, by the way," she snapped, "you know Bruno? That sweet little marsh fairy you thought you knew? The one you _sent after us? _Well, turns out he was working for the Fleens all along!"

Echae stared at her in horror, along with the rest of the northern group. "_What?_"

"Saetwo, you're making it sound worse than it is! He's not a bad guy!" Touli objected. Saetwo didn't even hear her.

"And _you_," she went on, rounding on Tyscene. "Miss Mayor's Daughter. He never told you the truth, did he? How he _let _the Bloats invade Zoombini Isle just to save himself, and how _he _was the one who told them about our escape plan!"

There was a ringing silence.

"But – but he _couldn't _have!" Tyscene protested. "He died!"

"No he didn't. Bruno told us everything. The plan was never to kill him. He knew the Bloats were coming, and he pretended he didn't know a thing about them in exchange for his own life."

"So he _didn't _get stabbed?" asked the Zoombini with sunglasses.

"No, _that _part really happened. I guess that was the Bloats punishing him for letting me and Echae find out about the plan. But he didn't die from it. He faked it."

Tyscene's single eye was filled with horror, with confusion. "So – so where's he _been _all this time?"

"Living in the Bloats' fortress. Completely comfortable," Saetwo replied dryly. "The Bloats needed him alive because he knew all about Zoombini Isle, and they couldn't rule it by themselves. Plus, he looks like us. He could, say, listen in on a top secret escape plan, and nobody would even _notice _him."

Suddenly, Xekrai spoke up. He had had enough. "Saetwo, shut _up!_ Stop talking about our dad like that!"

Saetwo glared at him. "Xekrai, he _betrayed _all of us! You want me to _compliment _him?!"

"He did what he had to, like Bruno! He didn't have a choice!"

"At least _Bruno _tried to make things right again! Last I checked, your dad isn't feeling very guilty!"

"Why should he? It was either do what he did, or get killed! Don't tell me _you _wouldn't have done the same thing!"

Saetwo was mortified. "Are you saying you _would?_"

Everyone stared breathlessly at Xekrai, waiting for him to give his answer. He looked unsure for a moment, but then his gaze at Saetwo grew defiant.

"Yeah," he said. "I would."

Dead silence.

"What kind of leader _are _you?!" Conneda finally exclaimed.

"I'm the leader that got us this far!"

"No, you didn't," Echae said harshly, stepping forward. "Saetwo and Uloobu got you this far. Good thing, too. I would never want _you _as my leader."

Saetwo stared at him. Even after everything they had said to each other, he was still defending her?

"After hearing what you've said," Touli spoke up to Xekrai, "I don't think I do either."

"Me neither," said the green-nosed Zoombini.

Slowly but surely, all the Zoombinis nodded and muttered in agreement – all of them, not just the southern group.

Xekrai looked utterly shocked. He had never once suspected this would happen to him.

"You've gotta be kidding me," he said furiously. Then he turned to Iake and Weiswyo. "You guys don't believe what she's saying, do you? You're still with me."

The two of them looked nervously at the ground, not knowing what to do. Echae's conversation with them was still ringing clearly in their heads. And hearing what their leader had just said, they couldn't ignore it any longer.

Finally Iake looked up. "Sorry, boss," he said quietly. "I think Saetwo's right."

"Me too," muttered Weiswyo.

Xekrai looked even more betrayed than before – frightened, even. He turned to his sister. "Tyscene, what about you?" he said, almost pleadingly. "He's your dad too! I mean, we're family! You can't say you don't trust me!"

But Tyscene already knew her answer.

"I _never _trusted you, Xekrai," she said in a low voice. "If you think I'm going to start now, after _this_, then you're crazy." Then she drew herself up, looking almost proud, and said perhaps the most unforgettable thing that day. "Because Xekrai, I'm not like you."

Everyone was stunned, Echae most of all. But hearing her voice, and seeing the way she looked at Xekrai, he realized she was telling the truth. Having your heart broken was, apparently, a very humbling experience.

Xekrai looked completely lost. Everyone was looking at him, not angrily, but firmly, having decided once and for all exactly how they felt about him. Everyone who had once looked up to him now realized the mistake they had made. Nobody needed him anymore.

"Fine," he finally said, his voice icy cold. "If that's how you really feel, then I guess there's no point in me sticking around this dump anymore."

The crowd parted as he pushed his way through, walking away from the campsite, away from Shade Tree, never once looking back.

"Xekrai! Where are you going?" Saetwo demanded.

"Anywhere but here," he called back without turning around. "I hope I never see any of you again."

Nobody said anything. They couldn't think of a single thing to say. All they could do was watch in complete silence as Xekrai marched away, heading down the path back the way they had come, and finally disappearing into the distance.

--

**A/N: **Wow. . . this story kind of turned into a soap opera. I hope nobody minds.


	21. Romelau's Revenge

Xekrai had never been alone for so long. It didn't help that he was in a strange land he was not at all familiar with, and – he had to admit – completely lost. Not having any desire to go back the way he had come, he had wandered off the path almost immediately, and was now stranded in the middle of a tree-covered grassland with no landmarks to help him find his way.

Spending the night by himself had been bad enough. It was freezing. But even now, as the sun rose over the hillside, things weren't going any better. As much as he tried to deny it to himself, he was scared. If the Fleens found him now, he'd be completely defenseless. . . .

_How could they all abandon me like that? _he thought helplessly to himself as he leaned against a large redwood tree. _After all I did for them! They think they can just kick me out?_

This was all Saetwo's fault. He hated her so much. It made him feel good to remember her and Echae fighting, but it wasn't enough. She was the one who had caused the others to turn against him. He wanted to personally make her regret everything she had done to him. Including Zoombini Isle. Even though he knew the truth about his father now, he couldn't stop blaming Saetwo for the whole thing. If she had just kept her nose out of things, maybe everything would have been different. . . .

The wind whistled through the trees, and he shivered. What he wouldn't give to be at Shade Tree right now, with the others. But they would never take him back now. They had let him leave without a fight, so they obviously didn't want him back. It hurt to think about that. He hated himself for it – it was a fatal weakness – but he actually cared what they thought about him. He didn't want to be rejected anymore.

He was lonely.

"You're angry at them, aren't you?"

A horrific stab of panic jolted through him. He leapt to his feet and spun around.

"_You!_"

Romelau had just emerged from behind the tree. A large group of Fleens was with him, and even as Xekrai stood frozen in fear, they slowly began to circle around him. There was nowhere to run.

"What do you want with me?!" Xekrai cried.

"All I want is to talk," Romelau replied, with the same coolness he always had. "You're willing to do that, aren't you?"

Xekrai's fear was quickly replaced by fury. "Of _course _not! Why would I listen to you?! You're pure evil!"

Romelau and several other Fleens laughed out loud at his words. Xekrai winced. Saying the word "evil" had made him sound like a naïve little kid who just repeated what the adults had spoon-fed to him.

"You think _I'm _evil?" said Romelau. "I gotta disagree with you. You Zoombinis – your dad, specifically – were the ones who wronged us first. All I did was serve justice."

"You and those Bloats destroyed our home! You tried to ambush me and the others when we haven't done a thing to you!" Xekrai was trembling in rage. "And my dad – _you _were the one who made my dad betray all of us!!"

"I didn't _make _him do anything," Romelau snapped. "He made his own decision. He had a choice."

"What kind of choice was _that? _Surrender or get killed?! You know you forced him into it! It's all your fault!!"

Romelau's glare was icy. "Don't be stupid. He's completely accountable for his choice." From behind his visor, his eyes flashed. "That's not saying it was the wrong choice, mind you."

Xekrai narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm saying he did the right thing. If he hadn't helped us, the Bloats would have taken over anyway, and he'd be dead. He defended himself, like any normal person would have done."

Xekrai gazed at the ground. That was exactly what _he _had said at Shade Tree.

"I know," he muttered. "You're right."

"And those others – your so-called friends – didn't understand that, did they? That's why you left, isn't it?"

Xekrai's eyes shot back up to Romelau. "You stay out of that!"

"I bet I know exactly what happened. You defended your dad, and they couldn't accept it. They didn't understand him like you do. So they went and kicked you out of their little group."

"_Shut up! _That's none of your business!!"

"They really hurt you, didn't they?" Romelau persisted. "You didn't do a thing wrong, and they _rejected_ you. Trust me, I know how you must feel."

"_Trust _you? This all happened because of you! I wouldn't be here now if it weren't for you!!" Xekrai shouted, his voice breaking. Romelau and the other Fleens stood back and watched expressionlessly, failing to recognize the significance of what was happening. For the first time since Zoombini Isle when he had been begging his father to live, and for only the second time in living memory, Xekrai was crying.

"You're wrong," Romelau said in a low voice. "I didn't stab you in the back like that. That was the Zoombinis. They turned against you just because you were brave enough to stand up for your dad."

"I was just doing what a leader would," Xekrai said helplessly. "Why didn't they understand?"

"They don't understand your ambition," Romelau said simply. "But _we _do. We understand you just like we understood your dad."

Xekrai looked up at him, completely lost and confused. "What do you mean?"

"We're about to get our ultimate revenge. You can be smart like your dad and help us, or you can be stupid like them and try and get in our way. You want to get back at them, don't you?"

Xekrai didn't answer right away. Get _back _at them? Was that really what he wanted? If he did that, they'd never accept him again. . . .

Then he thought of Saetwo again. She had ruined everything for him. All of a sudden, he completely forgot how much he hated Romelau and the Fleens. And it no longer mattered what the other Zoombinis did to him. All he wanted now was to make her pay.

"Yeah. I do."

--

Once Xekrai had left Shade Tree, everything quieted down tremendously. Not much happened the next day. A few groups of Zoombinis went exploring, but the most interesting thing they found was a dead tree that seemed to shuffle around.

Echae quickly realized that with Xekrai gone, he was the closest thing the group had to a leader – and he had twice as many people to look after now. He spent the day making sure there was enough food to go around and discussing with the others where they would go next.

"Ulla said we should stay away from the mountains," Touli reported that afternoon. "But the path leads straight to them. We'll have to figure out another way."

"Actually, they're called the Mountains of Despair," remarked Conneda. He was studying a tourist map they had found in a box on the side of the treehouse. "Pretty apt name."

"Hmm. And the forest really is called the Deep, Dark Forest," said Echae, leaning over to look at the map. "And the marsh is called. . . 'Who's Bayou'. Well, that's weird."

"Guys, could we stay on topic?" said Touli. "Now, look. From what we've heard, the only way through the Mountains of Despair is a whole bunch of winding tunnels and mines. People get lost in there all the time, and most never find their way back out."

"That sounds pleasant," Conneda said with a shudder. "So which way do we go?"

"Well, look here. If we go due north from here, we can circle all the way around the mountains. It'll take a lot longer, but it'll be much safer."

"That sounds like a plan," Echae agreed. "I really don't feel like getting lost and dying in the middle of a dark, spooky tunnel."

They discussed this plan with the rest of the group, and everyone agreed that going around the mountains was the best idea. There didn't seem to be any imposing forests or swamps barring their way, and they began to hope it would be easy traveling from here on out.

As the meeting broke up and everyone began to leave, Echae suddenly noticed Iake and Weiswyo approaching him.

"Hey, you guys."

"Hi Echae," said Weiswyo. "Listen. . . we really wanted to thank you. What you said yesterday. . . it made a lot of sense. I really think we are better off without Xekrai."

Echae managed a smile. "So, how does it feel, not having him around?"

Weiswyo frowned and stared at the ground. "Not as good as I thought."

Echae's smile faded away. "Yeah. I know what you mean. It shouldn't have happened like that."

Iake and Weiswyo turned to leave, and Echae was about to do the same when he noticed yet another person waiting to talk to him.

"Uh. . . Tyscene?"

She was standing in front of him, fidgeting nervously, looking like an entirely different Zoombini than she always had been.

"Echae. . . listen. . . ." she said quietly. "I'm. . . really sorry. For everything."

Echae started feeling that old, familiar guilt again.

"It's not all your fault," he said. "I've. . . been a big jerk."

"But you had a good reason."

"Look, it doesn't matter. Let's just forget about it. You know, you really aren't as bad as Xekrai."

"Yeah. You sure were right about him."

Echae looked away. Since their journey had started, all he had wanted was to expose to everyone else what a complete jerk Xekrai was. And now everyone knew. But he didn't feel happy about it. He felt nothing but regret.

"Yeah. . . I guess I was."

--

Dusk had fallen, and the brilliant orange sun bathed the landscape in a warm glow. Saetwo was sitting on a small grassy knoll a few minutes away from Shade Tree, looking up at the sun. She remembered that the sunset had looked exactly like this the day the Bloats arrived at Zoombini Isle. The day everything changed.

Someone was coming up from behind her. She didn't need to look to know who it was. She heard the buzzing propeller.

"Uloobu. . . I kind of don't feel like talking right now."

Uloobu slowly pulled up next to her, looking at her in concern. "Saetwo. . . we're all having dinner now. Don't you want to come back?"

"I'm not hungry."

Uloobu sighed softly, seating himself down next to her. "Look, Saetwo. I really hate seeing you all upset like this. I wish you would be happy again."

Saetwo gave him a little smile, but it was a completely false one.

"Thanks, Uloobu. I wish I could be too. But things are a little complicated right now."

"This is all about Echae, isn't it?"

Saetwo sighed to herself and turned away. "Yeah. It is."

"I can't believe you guys would fight like that. I mean, you're best friends."

"I know. I'm not sure why it happened. I. . . it was my fault, though. I got so angry at him, for no reason at all."

Uloobu didn't answer, which she took to be his polite way of agreeing with her.

"I don't know why I acted the way I did," she admitted. "I mean, I know he would never like Tyscene. I _know _it. So why did I fly off the handle like that?"

"I think I know," Uloobu offered.

"Huh? Why?"

"You're jealous."

"Jealous? Of what?"

Uloobu just raised an eyebrow knowingly at her. Saetwo suddenly realized what he was talking about, and her eyes grew wide.

"_Jealous? _Me?" she cried defensively. "That's ridiculous! I don't like Echae like that."

"Are you sure?"

Saetwo tried to answer, but she couldn't. Suddenly, she didn't even know the answer.

"Listen," Uloobu went on. "Whatever the case is, you two were obviously meant to be friends forever. I mean, I've seen both of you today. You haven't talked to each other all day, and it's showing. You guys look. . . incomplete. If that makes any sense."

Saetwo nodded slowly.

"I'm just saying. . . I think you guys should stop being angry at each other. It's not right. You're so much happier when you're together. And all I want is to see you happy."

Saetwo looked at him in surprise. "Uloobu, what are you saying?"

"I really like you, Saetwo."

"I like you too, Uloobu."

"That's not what I mean."

Saetwo's eyes grew even wider. She must have looked horrified at him. _Oh Uloobu, why? You're such a good friend. . . why do you have to make this even more complicated?_

"But that's besides the point," Uloobu said quickly, turning away in a futile attempt to hide his blushing. "I know Echae likes you more than anybody else. He really misses you right now. If you'd just talk to him. . . well, I'd feel better. And I know you guys would too."

Saetwo had no idea what to say. "Uloobu. . . I. . . ."

"It's okay. You don't have to say anything. I know you'd never like a weird little klutz like me anyway."

"Uloobu, don't say that. Don't ever say that. You're _not _weird. You're no less perfect than any of us," Saetwo said fervently. "I can't see well even _with _glasses. And Echae. . . I've lost count of all the times he's tripped over his skates."

Uloobu smiled a little. "I guess," he said. "But still. . . what I'm trying to say, Saetwo. . . you shouldn't be scared of talking to him. You know, before I really met you guys, I just knew you as those two Zoombinis who were always together, no matter what."

"Really?"

"I think it's that way for a lot of people. They just associate you two with each other," Uloobu said honestly. "It's kind of funny, really. . . it's like the two of you are the only ones who _don't _know you're meant for each other."

Saetwo was completely stunned. Was he serious? Was that what everyone really thought? And was it really so obvious?

_Me and Echae. . . I never thought of it that way. But I do care about him so much. He always sticks up for me, no matter what. If I had to be with somebody. . . I don't think I'd want it to be anybody else._

She smiled. And this time it was genuine.

"Uloobu, you're so smart," she said. "What would I do without you?"

"I imagine you'd – hey! Stop tickling me!"

Saetwo was nuzzling him in the side with her nose, causing him to laugh uncontrollably and thrash around until they both fell onto their backs, exhausted and happy.

"You're completely right," she told him. "First thing tomorrow, I'm going to talk to him. And hopefully we'll be able to forget this whole thing ever happened."

Uloobu just grinned. "I'm glad."

--

They arrived back at Shade Tree a few minutes later. Saetwo sighed and looked out at all the Zoombinis gathered around the campfire. Her friends. The ones who had made this incredible journey with her. Only now did she realize how much she cared about all of them.

"Feels like we were gone for a long time, doesn't it, Uloobu?"

He didn't answer.

"Uloobu?" She turned around to look at him. And her heart stopped.

Uloobu was paralyzed in fear, staring silently up at the group of towering yellow creatures who were grinning sinisterly at him.

Saetwo tried to scream, but Echae beat her to it.

"FLEENS!! EVERYBODY RUN!!"

From the campfire, all the Zoombinis burst out screaming and began fleeing in all directions, but it was no use. The Fleens were upon them almost instantly.

"NO YOU DON'T!!" Saetwo shouted, flying after them. They had come too far and been through too much for the Fleens to end it all now. She couldn't let it happen.

She reached the campsite and began wildly attacking the Fleens, zooming back and forth and slamming into them as hard as she could. The other Zoombinis stared at her in shock as they attempted to scramble to safety.

"Guys! You have to fight back!!" she yelled at them before turning around and headbutting a Fleen in the stomach before he could advance on her further. "Come _on! _I can't do this by myself!"

"You heard her! Let's go, you guys! They're not pushing us around anymore!" Echae shouted, assuming the commanding role once again. Saetwo's heart leapt when she heard him. His words proved effective, as the Zoombinis suddenly grew determined expressions on their faces, stopped running, turned around and started battering the Fleens back.

"Don't be idiots! You can't get rid of us!" Dreesi bellowed at them as she stomped after Touli, only to be chased back by her and Conneda moments later. Saetwo saw five vicious-looking Fleens closing in on Weiswyo and Iake, and immediately flew over and started pummeling them while the two Zoombinis did the same.

The entire campsite was hurled into chaos. The tree shook violently again and again as Zoombinis and Fleens were thrown against it. The pot of soup was spilled all over the ground, and the unchecked fire in the pit was blazing out of control.

Saetwo pulled out of the fight for a moment and watched breathlessly. The Fleens were as vicious as ever, yet somehow, some way, the Zoombinis were winning. They were too driven, too determined, to be taken down now. They were putting up an incredible fight.

Except for one.

"Saetwo!" came a panicked cry. Saetwo spun around to see Uloobu lying on the ground. He was being held there by a Fleen, who had one boot placed firmly on his head. Several other Fleens were surrounding them.

Before Saetwo could even begin to move, there was a sudden and powerful blow to her head. Gasping, she collapsed to the ground and started groaning in pain. She had to get up. She had to save Uloobu. But she couldn't move.

"And here I thought you'd be tougher than that," came a low, gloating voice. Suddenly a Fleen was standing over her. No, not standing – hovering. He had jetpacks.

"Romelau!" she gasped.

"You should have just let us get our revenge on you back in the forest. Then maybe we would've been lenient. But now you're about to suffer worse than you've ever imagined. You and that one-eyed freak."

Saetwo rolled out from under him at the last instant as he came slamming down on the ground where she had been laying. She leapt back into the air to face him – and then the wind was knocked out of her as someone _else _dealt her a blow to the head. Staggering to stay airborne, she turned around to face her assailant.

Nothing in the world could have prepared her for what she saw.

"_Xekrai?!_"

"You took everything away from me," he growled as he slowly advanced on her. "Now let me return the favor."

Saetwo was too shocked to respond, and almost didn't react in time as he swung his foot at her head again. But it was no fight. He was earthbound and she wasn't. She flew several feet above his head, then turned around and slammed down into him, leaving him sprawling.

"What are you _doing?! _Why are you _helping _them?!" she demanded, all the while having to dodge his attacks.

"I finally figured out where I'm really respected!" he shot back, throwing himself at her. She easily dodged him and swung her propeller at him. He let out a yelp of pain as he fell to the ground.

No sooner had he fallen than Romelau came up behind her. "Forget it, you little brat. You can't win. It's two against one."

"GET AWAY FROM HER!!" came a furious cry as Echae came from out of nowhere and hurled himself at Romelau. The leader of the Fleens was caught completely by surprise, and as the two of them fought, Saetwo turned her attention back to Xekrai.

"Romelau! We can't win this fight!" Dreesi panted as she scrambled up to her leader. "What should we do?"

Romelau threw Echae off of himself. "We're _not _getting beaten by a bunch of Zoombini kids! Not again!"

"We've already got the one-eyed kid!" Narnoo shouted over. "Let's just cut our losses and get out of here!"

Saetwo froze when she heard him. _Uloobu!_

Whipping frenetically around, she finally caught sight of him being held by two burly Fleens. He was thrashing around and screaming in fright, but there was no one to help him.

Romelau seemed to recognize that none of the other Zoombinis would come so easily. "Fine," he growled. "FLEENS! RETREAT! TO THE MOUNTAINS!"

The Fleens responded instantly, abandoning their losing fight against the Zoombinis and scrambling up the path after their leader. The path that led directly to the Mountains of Despair.

"ULOOBU! NO!!" Saetwo cried, but he had already vanished within the wave of yellow. She was about to fly after him when she noticed Xekrai attempting to catch up to the Fleens.

"You're not going _anywhere!!_" she snarled, throwing herself on top of him and pinning him to the ground.

"This isn't over, Zoombinis!" she heard Romelau jeering from up the path, even as he and the Fleens continued to run. "If you want your friend back, you'll have to find us in the mountains! If you don't die first, that is!"

Saetwo's vision blurred as her eyes filled up with tears, and she squeezed them shut until the Fleens' raucous laughter and thundering footsteps faded into the distance.

--

"What have you got to say for yourself, Xekrai?"

The Zoombinis had tied Xekrai to the tree, and were now circled around him and glaring at him in fury. Echae had stepped forward and asked the question.

"You brought this on yourselves," Xekrai snapped. "You shouldn't have gotten rid of me like that. Romelau was right – you don't understand me, or my dad. But they do."

"Yeah, they obviously understand you a _lot!_" Echae countered. "That's why they _left_ you here!Xekrai, they don't care about _anybody! _How could you possibly fall for that?!"

"I didn't fall for anything! I made my own decision!"

"I don't want to hear it! Now where are they taking Uloobu?!"

"You heard him, Echae. They're going to the Mountains of Despair," Tyscene said glumly. "I guess we'll have to go through them after all."

"No. You guys shouldn't have to endanger yourselves like that," Saetwo spoke up. "Uloobu and I were the ones who beat them in the first place. Romelau said we're the ones he really wants. So I'll go."

"By yourself? Saetwo, don't be an idiot," Echae said harshly. "We don't abandon each other like that. At least _most _of us don't." He shot a venomous glare at Xekrai. "We're coming too."

Saetwo winced at the anger in his voice. She didn't know if it was directed at her or Xekrai, or both.

"You mean we're _all _going?" asked Conneda.

"We can't do that. If we all go, there's a chance that none of us will make it." Echae made no attempt to hide the grim truth of the situation. "We can't have come this far for it all to end like this. Half of us will go after them, and half of us will go around."

"Well I'm going after them. I'm _not _leaving Uloobu," Saetwo said immediately.

"I'm going too," said Tyscene.

"Me too," said several others.

"Well you're not dragging _me _into this," Xekrai muttered.

"Oh yes we are!!" Echae roared at him. "This is all your fault! If the Fleens try and do anything to us, you'll be the _first _to go!"

The Zoombinis quickly divided into two groups. Saetwo, Echae, Tyscene, Touli, Conneda, Iake, Weiswyo, and eight other Zoombinis formed the group that would be going to the mountains, and Echae untied Xekrai for the purpose of bringing him with. The remaining Zoombinis would be following the original plan and going around the edge of the mountains, away from danger.

"We still have our first mission, and that's to find a new home," Echae told the second group. "If none of us come back, it's your guys' job to do that for us. Okay?"

They nodded slowly.

"Okay. Let's go, everybody."

After a few lingering, morose goodbyes between friends, the two groups split off from each other and marched away from Shade Tree, the last rest stop they would ever see. Saetwo watched the second group as they filed off through the trees, knowing they wouldn't have to deal with anything she and her friends were about to face.

"What'll happen if we _don't _make it?" Conneda wondered fretfully as Shade Tree vanished from sight.

"We _have _to make it," Saetwo said firmly. "This journey of ours just got a lot more important. It just became a rescue mission."

--

**A/N: **Well, as always, I updated way later than I intended to. The next chapter should be up soon though, since it's a puzzle and I don't have to come up with anything original.

I actually feel really bad for Xekrai now.


	22. The Heart of the Lion

The Zoombinis traveled all through the night and all the next day, never stopping for anything. The Mountains of Despair grew closer and closer as they went on, and the group became more and more nervous, but the thought of what was happening to Uloobu only drove them harder.

Xekrai was constantly being flanked by Iake and Weiswyo, who had volunteered to make sure he didn't try anything. Nobody spoke to him, and most tried to stay as far away from him as possible.

Saetwo couldn't keep her eyes off the encroaching mountains. It was an enormous range, stretching far off into the distance on either side of them. After everything the group had heard, she wondered with a cold dread if they would even make it through them alive. Something told her that, one way or another, this was their final leg of the journey.

Finally, as evening began to set in, the group reached the base of the mountains and slowly began ascending a winding path up the side of the nearest one.

"How are we gonna find Uloobu like this?" asked Conneda after they had been climbing for a long time.

"Somewhere there should be a tunnel leading inside of the mountain," said Tyscene. "And from there. . . well, we just try not to get lost."

"Hey! I think I see one!" Echae exclaimed, craning his head up. "Up there!"

Everyone looked up. High above their heads was a large stone landing, and behind it, an enormous archway that led into the mountain. Only darkness radiated from it.

Saetwo shivered. "I guess that's our way in."

Several minutes later they climbed up onto the landing and gathered near the archway, peering inside. It was too dark to see anything.

"I don't want to go in there," Touli whimpered.

"Let's have dinner before we go inside," said Echae. "Who knows when we'll get to eat again."

Everybody sat down and unpacked the food they had brought along from Shade Tree. Mostly they ate in silence, unable to take their eyes away from the looming doorway for very long.

As usual, Saetwo wasn't hungry and opted to sit on the ledge by herself, far away from the others. They had a beautiful view from their height, and the setting sun only made it more breathtaking. She thought she could see all the way back to Shade Tree, and even further back than that. It was as if the whole world was laid out before her.

"Getting one last look, huh?" came a voice. Saetwo started when she realized Echae was standing a few feet away from her.

"Yeah, I guess so."

Echae sat down without looking at her. Saetwo wasn't sure what to do. She wanted to make good on her word to Uloobu and apologize, but suddenly it didn't seem so easy.

"We've really come a long way, haven't we?" said Echae.

Saetwo kept gazing out over the landscape. "Yeah. I never imagined we'd make it this far."

"I never imagined we'd _have _to. Just think about how much we've done since we left Zoombini Isle."

She did think about that, for a long time. To say nothing of the storm they'd had to weather through to even make it here, there were the countless strange encounters they'd had and the dangers they'd faced. They had outwitted sneezing cliffs, talking rocks, and pizza-eating tree trunks. They'd met a green boatman and a squirrely band director, who were both kind if not a _little _too organized. They'd traveled by giant toad and by catapult. And most importantly, they'd learned the frightening truth about what happened that one day on Zoombini Isle – from, of all people, a wandering marsh fairy.

And now, here they were.

"I don't want it to end this way," she said softly. "We've been through so much. We can't have come all this way just to die alone in the dark, where no one will ever find us."

Echae stood up. "Then let's make sure that doesn't happen."

Saetwo turned to look up at him, but he had already turned his back on her and skated over to the others.

"Okay guys, I think it's time," he said. "Let's do this."

Slowly, reluctantly, everyone cleared away what was left of their meals before standing up and gathering behind Echae, facing the entrance. Echae took a deep breath and passed through, into the shadows. Everyone else followed after him, and, with one final backward glance at the outside world, so did Saetwo.

Once everyone's eyes adjusted to the dim light, they saw what was before them – a large cavern with a seemingly bottomless pit. The only way across was a pathway that hugged the left side of the room. None of the Zoombinis noticed this, however. Each one of them was staring at the same thing: an enormous stone statue of a crouching lion. It was on the far left side of the cavern, and the serpentine pathway wound its way around it – at least until the statue's paw on the far side, which was blocking the way out.

"How do we get across?" wondered Conneda.

"I'm sure this is just another puzzle for us to solve," said Echae. "That pathway has a bunch of little stone slabs on it. It looks like we're supposed to stand on them. We probably just have to figure out the order."

"Echae, look over here," said Saetwo. She had flown over to the wall next to the lion statue and was gazing at it. Echae slowly and carefully shuffled over to her, as the stone landing jutting out in front of the wall was only big enough to hold a few Zoombinis.

"There's markings on the wall," Saetwo told him. "I think this is some kind of hint."

Both of them observed the markings. There were two circles, one orange and one green, and beneath those, pictures of two pairs of eyes, one droopy and one normal.

"Those circles must be noses," Echae finally decided. "And these must tell us what order we're supposed to stand in."

"But which one do we go by? Noses or eyes?"

"I don't know. But that orange nose symbol is farthest to the right, so. . . I'll go up front."

He very cautiously edged his way alongside the stone slabs on the pathway while Saetwo continued to stare at the hieroglyphics.

_These look ancient, _she marveled. _But how could they be? Zoombinis have never lived here before. . . have they? Maybe there's more to our race than even we know._

Echae reached the slab in the very front, next to the lion's paw, and gingerly put one foot down. Nothing happened. He sighed in relief.

"Now all we have to do is use process of elimination to figure out where the rest of us go," he decided.

"Well, the green and orange noses are spaced pretty far apart. It looks like you could fit two more between them. I think that means two different nose colors go after you, and _then _green."

Saetwo turned to the rest of the group. "Anybody feel brave?"

"I'll do it," Conneda said immediately, working his way up along the path until he reached the spot behind Echae. Suddenly he turned back to look at Saetwo.

"Uh, Saetwo. . . what do you think will happen if we're wrong?"

"I don't know," she admitted.

They very quickly found out. As Conneda stepped onto the slab, it dipped under his weight and began rapidly spinning on its center. Saetwo and the others gasped as he was flipped underneath the slab, completely vanishing, only to pop up an instant later from underneath another slab near the back of the line, crashing down on top of it as it stopped spinning.

"Ow. . . that wasn't fun," he groaned.

Suddenly there was a creaking noise. Saetwo looked back at the group and noticed something she hadn't before: a massive metal portcullis was hanging above their heads, suspended by a chain that was held in place by a column of pegs. The creaking came from one of the pegs suddenly inching out of the wall and dropping down into the bottomless chasm, and the gate shifting dangerously in response.

". . .This complicates things."

"There's only six of those pegs," Weiswyo fretted. "If we mess up five more times, the gate'll come down, and then. . . ."

Saetwo had a few unpleasant flashbacks involving the Allergic Cliffs. "That's okay, you guys. We've figured out harder stuff than this."

When Tyscene tried to stand behind Echae, only to be flipped under and emerge from under a different slab further back, the group winced but realized that purple noses must go second.

"That means the order is orange, purple, red, green, blue," said Saetwo, trying to ignore the sound of the second peg dropping out. "So Iake, come up here."

Iake inched his way over to the front of the line, looking uneasy. "You sure about this?"

"Positive." _Not that I haven't been wrong before, _she thought, but kept silent.

Iake inhaled deeply and hopped onto the slab behind Echae. Nothing happened.

"There. That wasn't so hard," Saetwo said in relief. "We shouldn't mess up anymore. So let's go in order. Everybody with a purple nose come on up."

One by one, as there wasn't enough space for any more than that, the purple-nosed Zoombinis stepped out from behind the raised gate and made their way up the path, most of them stealing nervous glances up at the imposing lion statue behind them. They all stepped onto a slab, and they were all safe.

"Awesome," Saetwo said happily.

"Saetwo, you've helped out enough. Why don't you come over here?" Conneda offered, trying to ignore Xekrai shouting "Get _off _of me!!" as two other Zoombinis attempted to drag him up the line behind his sister.

"Okay then," Saetwo agreed, flying over and alighting on the slab behind Conneda. Suddenly, the slab began to spin wildly, and she cried out as she felt herself being flipped over and over, finally plunging beneath the path, and then, the next thing she knew, flying out from under another slab and crashing down onto it.

"What the – " she sputtered. Now she was directly in _front _of Conneda. Everyone looked at her in shock, then looked up at the gate in fear as one more peg came loose.

"But we both have blue noses! What does it matter what order we're in?"

"I just noticed something, Saetwo," said Conneda. "There's two spaces behind me, and there's four of us with blue noses. So I guess you're supposed to be in the front."

"So why didn't _you _just get sent where I'm standing?"

"I don't know. . . ."

Another problem had just arisen. Touli had just hopped up behind Xekrai, when suddenly she too was flipped under and came up one space further back.

"That's four mistakes already, you guys!" Echae shouted from the front of the line. "We _can't _mess up anymore!"

"But that makes no sense! There's no more guys with red noses, so why am I back _here?_" Touli demanded.

"There must be something more to this order. Something we're not thinking of," Conneda muttered. As he spoke, Saetwo's eyes were drawn back to the markings on the wall.

"Of course. . . ."

She flew back and looked at them. "That must be what these eyes mean. The order of nose color is still the same, but within one nose group we have to arrange ourselves in order according to what our _eyes _look like."

"You're kidding," Weiswyo groaned.

"Let's see. . . ." She studied the carvings more closely. "The normal-looking eyes are farthest to the left, so that means they go last. The only reason Echae's in front is because he's the only one with an orange nose."

Weiswyo and Conneda pulled up behind her. "And the droopy eyes are farthest to the right," said Conneda, "and Touli's got droopy eyes, so shouldn't she be _first _out of everybody with a green nose? Iake went right behind Echae, after all."

"I don't think so. . . if you look, the orange nose picture is farther to the right than the droopy eye picture. That makes me think that one other kind of eyes should go in front of the droopy ones."

Then it dawned on her. "And that must be glasses!" she realized. "Iake went behind Echae because nobody's got a purple nose and glasses, and I went in front of you, Conneda, because _I've _got glasses. So that means. . . Weiswyo, you're in front of Touli!"

"Oh. That's nice."

He rolled over to the space between Xekrai (who was being held in place by Tyscene) and Touli and climbed up onto it. Nothing happened.

"Looks like we solved another one," Conneda said with a smirk. "_No _puzzle is too hard for us!"

Saetwo rolled her eyes. "Yeah, sure."

She flew out to get a good look at everybody already in line. "Okay everybody. The order is glasses, droopy eyes, one eye, sunglasses, and regular eyes. Let's go."

All the remaining Zoombinis edged over and climbed onto the slabs where they belonged, and there were no more flipping incidents. Saetwo smiled hopefully. They were that much closer to finding Uloobu.

After the final blue-nosed Zoombini had stepped into line, there suddenly came a low rumbling from the lion statue that sounded almost like a growl. Without warning, it lifted its massive paw up and turned its head to look at them. From this angle, it looked like it was smiling.

Saetwo was never sure afterwards, but as she looked up at it, she swore she saw it blink.

Now that the way was clear, Echae could see that the pathway led out of the cavern and down a small, dark tunnel. His heart sank. Who knew how long it was.

"We're ready to go, Echae," Iake reminded him.

"Yeah, okay. Let's go, everybody," Echae said to the group, skating away down toward the tunnel. The others followed after him.

As she went, Saetwo glanced behind her and got one last look at the doorway back outside, where the light of the setting sun still poured in, as well as one last look at the lion statue.

"Thank you," she whispered to it before vanishing down the tunnel. The doorway disappeared from view, and all light from the outside world was gone.

--

The Hotel Dimensia was empty. No one had made any plans to stay there tonight, as word had it that the owner was off on a regional band tour. They might have been surprised, then, to know that she was now standing right in front of her hotel, her arms folded.

"I guess you got called here by the same person?" she asked the green-skinned man standing next to her.

"Yep. He sounded right nervous. All I can say is, this best be mighty important."

"You got that right. I had to call off my tour for this."

Both of them fell silent as the bushes nearby began to rustle and a purple winged creature came flying out from behind them.

"Good. You both made it," he said.

"Now just a minute here, sugar," Ulla said impatiently, putting her hands on her hips. "Why'd you have to call us both over here all of a sudden? We don't even know who you are."

"No, I guess you wouldn't," the fairy sighed. "But I know who both of you are. All you have to know is that my name's Bruno."

"All right then, Bruno," said Captain Cajun. "Just _what _is so important that y'all had to bring us here all sudden-like? And _how_, may I ask, did you go about findin' out who we are?"

"I believe you both know the Zoombinis?"

Ulla and Captain Cajun looked at each other in shock.

"What about them?" asked Ulla.

"They told me about you two. I didn't know who else to go to," Bruno explained as he gripped his wand, his face screwed up in guilt. "They're in trouble. Really, really big trouble. I played a part in it, but I'm never going to make that mistake again. I'm going to get them out of this somehow. And for that, I need your help."


	23. Crystal Clear

**A/N: **Guh. This chapter was a pain to write. Mostly because I fail at describing things. And at writing emotional stuff.

--

Looking back, Saetwo was never able to remember a more horrible experience in her life than the endless days the group spent traveling through the Mountains of Despair. Every day was the same as the one before: trudging through cramped, barely illuminated rock tunnels leading on and on, subsisting on whatever food they had been able to bring from Shade Tree, and never being able to see the sky. Aside from a few spiders and rats, they were the only living things. They had absolutely no way of telling day from night, as they were always exhausted but were only allowed a few hours of sleep at a time.

No matter how far or how long they traveled, though, there was never any sign of the Fleens, or of Uloobu. Neither did they seem to be drawing close to any sort of exit. As the days wore on, Saetwo lost more and more of what hope she had left. She decided the Mountains of Despair were named very aptly.

"We don't even know where we are," Weiswyo sighed one day, who knew how long later. "We could be walking around in circles for all we know. And we're almost out of food."

"We're going to die in here, aren't we," Tyscene said hopelessly.

"Guys, come on. We can't give up now," Echae pleaded. "I know it seems hard now, but if we just keep going. . . ."

He trailed off. Not even he believed what he was saying.

Saetwo was gazing up at the ceiling of the tunnel, only a few feet above their heads, and trying to hold in her frustrated tears. The group couldn't keep going on like this. And who knew what had happened to Uloobu in this amount of time. . . .

"I don't think we've been down this way yet," said Echae, turning down a path that branched off from the tunnel. "Maybe we should – OW!!"

There was a loud clang of metal, followed by the sound of Echae falling over onto something hard.

"Oof. . . what's this?"

"After all this time, you're still tripping," Saetwo couldn't help but remark.

"I tripped _over _something," Echae said shortly, climbing to his feet. Everyone gathered around the place where he had fallen, and, through the dim light, tried to make out what was there.

"I think they're. . . tracks," said Iake. "Mine tracks."

"People used to _mine _things in here?" wondered Touli as they walked up and down their length, getting a good look at them.

"Guys, don't you realize what this means?" Saetwo exclaimed with a thrill of excitement. "We can follow the tracks out of this awful place! They _have _to lead out of the mountains!"

"Hey, you're right!" said Conneda.

"But even if we do get out, it won't help us find Uloobu," Echae reminded them.

"Sure it will. The Fleens can't last in here any longer than we can," Saetwo said assuredly. "They must have left by now. We'll just follow them."

"Well, that's great," said Weiswyo. "So all we have to do is walk along the tracks until we get out of here?"

"It's gonna be even easier than that," came Conneda's voice from off in a corner. Everyone turned and looked. From out of the shadows they could just barely make out Conneda, visibly delighted, standing next to a large pile of discarded wooden boards. They all had wheels.

--

"WHEEEEEEEE!!" Saetwo cheered as the group rode their boards along the tracks, racing through the mountains at breakneck speed. They passed through narrow tunnels and enormous, vaulting caverns whose ceilings were too high to see. They wound around huge stalagmites and at times rode along precipitous ledges that threatened to throw them off.

"THIS IS AWESOME!!" shouted Conneda.

"I'M GONNA DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE!!" wailed Touli.

After riding for nearly an hour, they finally began to lose momentum and the entire line of boards slowed to a stop just as they passed through a small hole in a stone wall. Saetwo, at the front of the line, was the first to see the room they had all just entered.

"Ugh. . . I'm gonna be sick," Echae groaned from the back of the line.

"Are you kidding? That was a blast!" said Conneda.

"Hey Saetwo, what's up there?" called up Weiswyo.

Saetwo groaned, trying to get over her churning stomach, and looked up. "Oh. . . my."

In the middle of the room was a large, green, multi-faceted crystal hanging by a hook. On either side of it were two long, wooden platforms. The platform nearest the Zoombinis had a smaller, rectangular crystal on one end, right in front of where Saetwo was standing. The platform on the far end led back to another, circular platform. Standing on it at a ninety-degree angle to each other were two more rectangular crystals – which, to Saetwo's astonishment, each bore the picture of a Zoombini.

Saetwo found herself staring across the room at the Zoombini's image drawn into the crystal. It didn't look like anyone she had ever met, but that didn't make it any less unnerving. It looked _exactly _like a real Zoombini. Just gazing into its lifeless eyes was one of the scariest things she had done thus far.

Finally tearing her gaze away, she saw that the mine tracks led to a short but steep drop right in front of her, led under the platform for a few feet, and then dropped off directly underneath the large crystal. Where the tracks broke off, there wasn't ground, but a pitch black hole. Beyond that, they continued on under the far platform, looped around, and led to a safe-looking spot away from the crystal, where they vanished through another doorway, presumably continuing on.

Saetwo could only imagine what they would have to do here.

"How do we get past that big crystal?" asked the Zoombini standing behind her.

"I dunno," Saetwo pondered, then noticed something strange. The wall behind the crystal was a large rock shelf, and sitting on it were several additional rectangular crystals. Saetwo flew up to them and gaped in shock. Each of them had one or two Zoombini features on it: a propeller, a green nose, and other things. What was truly amazing, though, was that not all the pictures stayed the same. Some of them flickered back and forth between all the different versions of that feature.

"They're _us_," she said dumbly. "Or. . . parts of us."

"H-how did all this get here?" Touli marveled. "Who's seen us before? Has this all been _waiting _for us?"

Saetwo couldn't even begin to wonder about that. As she continued to look around the room, she noticed a lever sitting on a rock slab below where they were standing.

"What does this thing do?" she wondered, giving it a push. As it clicked into position, there suddenly came a loud hum that made her leap back in shock. A bright shaft of light emanated from the small crystals on both sides of the large one, each hitting one of its faces. The picture of the Zoombini on the right crystal suddenly appeared on the face of the large crystal. Then, just as quickly as it had appeared, the light suddenly died away and the image vanished.

"Weird," she observed. "That big crystal is like some kind of mirror." She looked over at her empty seat in the front. "I guess if somebody stood right there, their image would be projected too."

"So how does _that _help us?" asked the one-eyed Zoombini.

"Well, look at all those crystals that just have body parts on them," said Conneda. His choice of words made Saetwo shiver. "I wonder if. . . we have to use those. . . so both the images are the same?"

"You mean we put them down on the platforms. . . and when the light shines through them, they change our reflections?" said Saetwo. "Kinda like filters. I guess that might work."

Since she was first, she realized she would have to match her own reflection with the picture across from her. She flew up to the shelf and, one by one, carried down the different crystals she needed, placing them on either one of the platforms. After a while, the only thing she had left to match up was their hairstyles, but she quickly found out this would be more difficult. The only crystal with a hair picture was one that continuously cycled through all five Zoombini hairstyles.

"So what does this mean? You have to time it exactly right?" said the Zoombini behind her.

"I guess we'll find out," she replied, flying it down and placing it on her platform. Much to her surprise, the picture suddenly stopped changing – now it was a picture of a flattop that flashed on and off.

"But that's not right," she protested. "That Zoombini on the other side has messy hair. This doesn't match."

Not knowing what else to do, she removed the crystal and flew it over to the other platform. As she put it down, she saw in surprise that it now bore the flashing picture of a ponytail. The picture's hairstyle would now match her own.

"Why does it change depending on where I put it?"

"Saetwo, stop talking to yourself and pull the stupid lever," said Conneda.

"Oh, right." She flew down to the lever and nudged it into position, then zipped back into position on her board just in time. As the light shone through again, her image refracted through the crystal in front of her, then through the crystal filters she had placed, and appeared on the face of the mirror. Opposite her, the picture's image shone through all the filters on the platform and illuminated the other face of the mirror. While the two reflections didn't look like either Saetwo or the crystal Zoombini, they were identical.

As the light and the images died away, Saetwo suddenly felt her board begin to roll forward. She let out a scream as she realized she was headed straight for the mirror, but at the last instant it suddenly pulled up slightly and Saetwo felt herself leaping over a gap in the tracks and crashing safely down on the other side, missing the large crystal by inches. Then she looped around and came to a stop just in front of a small doorway.

"Holy cow," she said once she found her voice. "What just happened?"

She was about to fly back to the lever and reset it, but didn't even get the chance. Suddenly, the circular platform on the right rotated so that the second crystal Zoombini was now in place, and at the same time, the Zoombini behind her had rolled up. All at once, the light turned on again, and both Zoombinis' images were refracted through the same crystal filters and changed in the same ways. For the second time, two images were imposed on the mirror, and again, both were identical.

Just as Saetwo had done, the Zoombini in front suddenly began rolling, picking up speed as she dropped down the incline and crying out as he careened over the gap. The crystal pulled up out of her way as well, and she just barely missed slamming directly into it before landing on the other side of the gap and rolling up behind Saetwo.

"I was not prepared for that," she said breathlessly.

"Neither was I," Saetwo said dumbly.

"Wait a minute," said Iake, shaking his head to clear it. "Does this mean. . . all the crystal filters we put down. . . they have to make _two _pairs of Zoombinis look the same?"

"That means we'll really have to plan ahead," Touli groaned from back in line.

"Yeah. We got lucky this time," Saetwo agreed. "But I guess now we know we have to look at both pictures when we put those filters down."

Thinking about this, she flew over to the lever and nudged it into its original position, when she heard all the Zoombinis behind her gasp. Confused, she turned around and saw what had surprised them: all the crystal filters now bore different pictures than they had before. Even the two crystal Zoombinis were now entirely different.

"What just happened?!"

"They just. . . changed," Tyscene gawked. "It was almost like magic."

Saetwo looked at the filters. They were all different from before, but some of them still had changing features.

"How. . . did that happen?"

"I'm hating this place more and more," Echae said nervously.

Saetwo started thinking. "I guess. . . every time we reset the lever, the pictures change. . . and the whole thing starts over again."

Everyone was silent, taking in what this meant. Not only would they have to figure out the flashing crystal pictures and place the filters so that they made not one, but _two _pairs of Zoombinis appear identical – they'd have to do it seven times in a row.

"Saetwo, you're the only one who can get over to those crystals, so you'll have to place them all," said Conneda, who was next in line. He was facing a Zoombini with a flattop, one eye, a green nose, and wheels. "But we'll all help you. Don't worry."

She tried to do as he said, but she couldn't help but be nervous. If they made a mistake, someone would be sent plummeting down the mine shaft underneath the crystal, most likely never to be seen again.

And so she began. With Conneda watching and giving suggestions, she placed a filter with a picture of a spring and a ponytail on his side, then covered up the ponytail by putting a picture of a flattop and a purple nose in front of it. On the other Zoombini's platform she put a picture of a spring and sunglasses, and in front of that, a purple nose. Thankfully, she didn't have to deal with any changing pictures this time around.

"Now, is that gonna work out for both of us?" Conneda asked, referring to the Zoombini standing behind him.

"Yep. They both have flattops and you both have sunglasses, so you should be fine."

Sure enough, as she pulled the lever, the crystals illuminated and the mirror displayed two identical Zoombinis. Then it pulled up as Conneda went sailing. No sooner had he landed safely on the other side than the round platform rotated and the next Zoombini in line moved up. The crystals lit up a second time, and while two different Zoombinis' images were now refracted through the same filters, the resulting images were still identical. The Zoombini rolled down the track and flew to safety.

"This shouldn't be so hard," Saetwo said to herself, trying to be optimistic, as she reset the lever again. Turning around, she was not surprised to find that once again, the filters now bore entirely new images.

As she started placing them again, her heart sank as she realized the only way to make the two images identical would be to use a filter with a changing hairstyle, which settled on a ponytail when she placed it.

"But a ponytail won't work for both of us," Iake complained. "That second mirror Zoombini has messy hair, not a ponytail. The second time through they won't be identical."

"I know, I know," Saetwo sighed. "Let me think."

Unfortunately, as she tried to do just that, she accidentally leaned against the lever.

"Oh no!" she cried as the crystals lit up. These two images were identical, but as Iake flew safely under the withdrawn mirror, Saetwo could only watch in horror as Weiswyo, the next Zoombini in line, rolled up. . . .

Suddenly, the filter's hairstyle changed from a ponytail to messy hair. The crystals lit up again, and both images on the mirror were the same. They both had messy hair.

"WAAAAAAAHHH!!" Weiswyo cried out as he flew over to join the rest of them.

"But – how – how did that happen?" Touli protested. "One minute that hair thing was a ponytail, and then it changed!"

"I know how," Saetwo realized, a smile growing on her face. "These changing hairstyles – what they settle as depends on what kind of hairstyle is right behind them. If there's those little hairs behind them it'll turn into messy hair, but if there's messy hair behind them it'll turn into a ponytail!"

Touli looked blank. "Oh. . . of course."

"And the same must go for all the changing features. It all depends on what kind of feature we have, or what the other picture has."

With renewed confidence, Saetwo reset the lever and started the next round. Going by what she had learned, and with the others' help, she was able to place the filters to make the Zoombinis identical while figuring out what the changing images would turn out to be. Thankfully, fate seemed to be working out for them – if a changing nose would turn blue, then purple, the first crystal Zoombini would have a blue nose and the second would have a purple one. Everything was meant to match up – they just had to find the way.

"Um, Saetwo," Tyscene said a while later, as she was in front of the line, "we figured out that my kind of hair turns those changing hairs into a flattop, but that guy in front of me – " She gestured to the crystal Zoombini across from her. " – has three little hairs. And three little hairs turn it into messy hair. How are we gonna match up?"

"Hmm. . . ." Saetwo studied the filters for a long time. "Good question. I can't think of a way."

Echae was observing this from the very back of the line. "Well, there's a picture of a flattop up there, and flattops turn the changing pictures to three hairs," he called up. "Why not put that one in front of Tyscene, and put the changing one in front of that?"

Saetwo thought this over, realized it would work, and smiled. "Good idea."

And so it went on. The long minutes ticked by as, two by two, the group traveled past the crystal to the ground below. Every round of placing the filters took a lot of planning, and Saetwo thought it must have been nearly an hour since they had started. The whole thing was beginning to wear down her nerves.

Finally there were only two Zoombinis left, and Echae was the last one.

Saetwo tried to concentrate, but she was exhausted. Her back was hurting from carrying the filters around, and her vision was clouding. All she wanted now was to finish this.

"Okay. That should do it," she decided after she had placed all the filters. She pulled the lever and saw, to her satisfaction, the two images on the mirror were identical once again. The mirror pulled up, and the Zoombini flew to safety.

Then it was Echae's turn.

He pulled up, the lights went on, and Saetwo gaped in horror at her mistake. She had completely forgotten that one of the filters on Echae's side had changing eyes. The first Zoombini's eyes had been right for a match, but Echae's weren't. The image on his side had sunglasses; the other had droopy eyes.

Echae looked terrified, but was helpless to do anything as he began to roll down the hill.

Saetwo seemed to see it all happen in slow motion. Instead of raising up, the mirror lowered down, directly into his path. As he reached the ledge, he cried out as he flew off his board and slammed into the mirror. In the back of her mind, Saetwo screamed – he was about to fall, he would disappear down the shaft, they would never find him again –

"NO!!"

Saetwo flew at him, dived underneath him, catching him as he fell. Both of them watched in wide-eyed fright as Echae's board vanished forever down the shaft and the mirror rose back up nonchalantly, as if it hadn't almost killed someone.

Everyone stared. Straining under Echae's weight, Saetwo struggled to fly him over to the others. Everyone rushed over to help her as she deposited him safely on the ground, then landed, completely winded, next to him.

"Sae. . ." Echae said, conspicuously short of breath, "you just saved my life."

"Well of course I did," Saetwo insisted. "That was my fault, Echae. If I'd just been more careful, I would've noticed – "

Echae shook his head. "Sae, you have to stop blaming yourself for these things. You just put your own life in danger for me. You can't always – "

"Echae. Listen," Saetwo cut him off. It was now or never. She had to do it, for Uloobu. "I _did _have to do it. Twice now we've been separated from each other because of a mistake _I _made. I'm never going to let that happen again."

Echae gave her a strange look. "Twice?"

"The Pizza Trolls. . . and Shade Tree."

Echae looked confused, then astonished, as he realized what she meant.

"Echae, I'm. . . I'm so, so sorry," she burst out. "I was such a jerk to you. I don't even know what came over me. I don't deserve to be your friend."

Echae suddenly started blushing, then looked away from her. "Sae, it's all right. It's not a big deal."

"It is to me," Saetwo said fervently. She wasn't sure why, but tears were springing to her eyes. "I know it's not an excuse, but I know why I said all those things. I – I was jealous, because. . . I care about you so much."

Echae looked at her again, looking as though he hardly dared to believe what he heard. "Y'do?"

"Yeah. I do."

Not knowing what else to do, she flew up to him and gave him a hug. To her relief and joy, she felt him immediately return the favor.

"Let's not ever fight again," he said, and she could only nod in reply. He gave a quick sideways glance at Tyscene, who flashed him an awkward but encouraging smile.

"Uh. . . Sae," he said once they had pulled apart, "my board. . . well, you saw. . . I kinda lost it. Do you think. . . I could ride on yours?"

Saetwo giggled. "Of course you can, stupid."

"Well, what a relief that's over with," said Weiswyo as they prepared to set off once again.

"Uh, yeah. . . but isn't anyone bothered by the fact that there were Zoombinis on those crystals?" Conneda reminded everyone. "Who the heck put those things there, anyway?"

"Oh, just forget it," Tyscene sighed. "I think some things are better left a mystery."

--

The Zoombinis rode along the tracks for another long day, and when they finally came to an end, the group abandoned their boards and continued along the path. Saetwo had been right – the tracks _had _led them near the exit. Even as they walked along the upward-slanting trail, they could feel the air begin to grow lighter around them. They had nearly made it.

"We're going to make it through this after all," Saetwo whispered to herself.

Finally, they reached the summit of the slope, passed through a doorway, and found themselves in an enormous, cavernous chamber. Everyone gasped. The exit from the mountain, their gateway to freedom, was on the other side – but standing between it and them was a gaping, bottomless pit that descended into inky blackness, and suspended over that was the most intricate, complex puzzle the group would ever face.

The Zoombinis were facing their final challenge.


	24. The Trouble with Bubbles

**A/N: **Lolwut? Didn't I just put up the last chapter? Well school is just around the corner for me, so like I said, moar updates nao. Also, in case you start wondering: This is really, completely, what you have to do to beat this level on the highest difficulty. I did mah research 8D

--

The room they were in had four large stone shelves, one of which they were standing on. Connecting these four and spanning the bottomless drop underneath was a large, glowing, softly humming grid made of dozens of crisscrossing purple beams of light. Many of the squares in the grid had some sort of picture interposed in them, despite there being only empty space in between the beams. Other spaces actually sparkled in colors that differed from one to another, and, most disturbing of all, a few spaces contained what appeared to be spiraling whirlpools – of what, nobody could guess.

Saetwo stared and stared. The colors and light made it strangely entrancing, even beautiful, but at the same time, she was terrified of it. This was a puzzle they had to conquer.

"How. . . how do we get over there?" Echae asked shakily. His eyes were on the stone shelf across from them, far on the other end of the cavern. It led up to a small doorway, and, beyond that, the outside world. Even from their distance, the Zoombinis could see blackness and even one or two stars, meaning it was night outside. It was breathtaking. All they had to do was solve this one last challenge, and they would be free.

"Well. . . we might as well have a look at this thing," Saetwo decided. As everyone else watched, she flew out over the glowing grid, cautiously avoiding the whirlpools and trying to get a good look at everything else.

A few pictures, which she decided must have been holograms of some kind, were gray boxes with a Zoombini feature inside; par for the course on their adventure. They also had four small arrows sticking out of them, with one lit up, though which one was always different.

Most of the pictures were compass roses, which were _only _arrows. They were composed of four different arrows pointing in the four cardinal directions, always with one brightly lit and one or two others lit more dimly. Some of them were lit in white, while a few others were colored.

Still other pictures were large, colored circles with a four arrow symbol inside of them. They didn't seem to indicate any particular direction, so Saetwo flew over one of them to get a better look – and nearly jumped out of her skin as the circle suddenly burst out in crackling electricity.

"Woah! Saetwo, do that again!" said Conneda.

"Do I have to?" she said uneasily.

"Sae, when you flew over that yellow button thing, this yellow arrow just lit up!" Echae explained, gesturing at one of the compass pictures as best he could. Saetwo turned and looked at it and saw he was right; the last time she had passed by it, the arrow pointing east had been colored bright yellow and the arrow pointing south had been a faint yellow – but now it was the other way around.

"Okay. . . so whenever we pass over one of these things, the same-colored arrow changes direction. Good to know."

But Saetwo's biggest surprise of all came when she flew over to examine one of the sparkling fields. As she passed over a purple one, she wondered what purpose they could possibly serve – and quickly found out.

Just as she was on top of it, she froze in place.

"Sae? What's wrong?" called Echae.

"I – I can't move!" she realized, beginning to panic as she struggled to free herself. "I'm stuck!"

The others looked frightened and tried to race over to help her when they realized they had no way of reaching her. All they could do was watch as she frantically thrashed around. After several minutes, and with the greatest amount of effort, she finally managed to pull herself free of the field and zoomed back to the others as fast as she could.

"I can't do that again," she whimpered. "That was so scary. I – I thought I'd be stuck there forever."

"That might be better than getting sucked into one of those whirlpool thingies," said Touli. "Who _knows _where they lead to."

"Wait a minute!" Weiswyo suddenly realized. "How are the rest of us even going to get _out _there? We can't fly!"

No one could think of an answer to that.

"Well. . . maybe we use this thing," said Echae, skating over to a large machine the group hadn't noticed. Its most noteworthy feature was some kind of faucet sticking out of the top, with a plastic tube coming out of it and extending into the ground. In fact, the shelf to their right had an identical machine.

"What does it do, I wonder?" said Conneda.

"I dunno, but I bet we activate it by pushing these buttons," said Echae, wandering over to the edge of the shelf where two triangular buttons were set in the stone. One was pointing up, and one was pointing to the right. Echae stepped on one of them and was startled when what looked like a huge bubble wand suddenly rose up in front of him. From behind him, the machine began to whir and grind, and the button he was standing on sprang up, revealing a bellows underneath it, and began pumping air into the bubble wand. Alarmed, Echae jumped away just as an enormous bubble formed from out of the wand, floating for a few feet before popping.

"It makes bubbles!" he exclaimed. "_That's _how we'll get across! We'll fly over inside the bubbles!"

"It's not gonna be that easy," Touli reminded him. "I'm pretty sure all those arrows control what direction we go in. And some of them lead right into a whirlpool."

"And I'm sure we can't just go in any order," said Saetwo. "All those arrows with features must mean only people with that feature will go in that direction. And some of _those _lead to buttons. If somebody goes at the wrong time, we could all go the completely wrong way."

Everyone stood silently at her words, staring out at the grid lying before them. It was looking more and more impossible every second.

"We have to get this right. We _have _to," said Echae. "We can't lose anybody now. Not when we're so close."

"Then we won't," Saetwo said firmly. "This may take forever to figure out. But we'll do it."

--

What followed was nearly a full hour of discussing, double-checking, and planning ahead. None of the Zoombinis dared to activate the Bubble Machine until they were absolutely sure what order they had to go in. And as Saetwo had predicted, order was everything.

"Okay. I think we have it now," Echae finally announced. "Weiswyo, you go first. You take the bubble over to the right, where the other machine is, and wait there. Tyscene, you take the other route and go up. Anybody else who goes would just get sucked into a whirlpool, but you've got one eye so you'll get led away from it. You'll go over the red button, so then the path will change direction and it'll be safe for Weiswyo to keep going."

"But that'll lead me right to one of those sparkly places. I'll get stuck," Tyscene said fretfully.

"Yeah, we're working on that. Okay, Weiswyo, you'll have to use that other machine and get in another bubble. You'll go over the orange button and then get frozen in that yellow field. Then the orange arrow will change direction, so I'll take the upward path in the new direction, and that'll lead me right over the _yellow _button. When the yellow arrow changes directions, then it'll be safe for everyone else to take the upward path. Sound good?"

"No. You still haven't addressed the whole freezing issue," Tyscene said impatiently. "We don't want to be stuck here for the rest of our lives."

"I know, I know," Echae sighed. "Look, maybe you'll be able to free yourselves afterward. I don't know. But we've looked and looked, and there's _no _way of bypassing those things. We'll just have to risk it."

"What do you mean 'we'? You're not at risk at all here! You're putting us in danger just for your own stupid plan!"

Echae was almost tempted to yell at Tyscene, but experience had taught him better.

"Tyscene, please just do this. For all of us," was all he could say. It seemed to work, as Tyscene suddenly looked guilty and quickly glanced at the ground.

"Yeah, all right. If you think it's for the best."

Echae turned back to the others. "Okay, I think we got it all figured out now."

"Man, this is going to be _impossible_," sighed Iake.

"For everybody but Saetwo, anyway," remarked Conneda. "She can just _fly _across."

"No, I can't," Saetwo suddenly realized, even as she was staring out at the grid. "Echae, I just saw the way to get Tyscene across. The _only _way, I think."

"Huh? Where?"

"That arrow. After you change the yellow arrow's direction, and I go, it'll lead me right to that picture over there. Do you see what it is?"

Echae strained to look where she was gesturing. As he saw it, his heart visibly sank.

"A propeller."

"Yeah. Somebody with a propeller will get sent right up to where Tyscene is and push her out of the way. Then she'll be able to make it all the way across." She turned to Echae with fear and sadness in her eyes. "And I'm the only one with a propeller. I'm the only one who can do it."

"But then _you'll _be frozen! And you said yourself, you're not strong enough to free yourself a second time!"

"I know. But Echae, I have to do it. Those pictures are there for a reason, I know. I have to follow them."

Echae shook his head helplessly. "Sae. . . what'll happen to you?"

Saetwo could only smile weakly, trying not to display her fright. She had to be strong, for both of them.

"I made it this far, didn't I? Maybe I'll get lucky. But whatever happens. . . was meant to be."

Echae looked at her remorsefully for a long time, then finally swallowed hard and nodded.

"Okay, Sae," he said. "If anyone can make it through this thing, I know you can."

He looked back at the rest of the group. "Okay guys. Let's go."

Weiswyo rolled up first. As he stepped on the right-pointing button, another large bubble wand rose up and, as his button pumped air into it, he was quickly encased in a bubble that floated off to the right. All the Zoombinis watched in fascination, some of them even giggling at the sight of him floating gently along inside a giant bubble. Whenever he flew over an arrow, his bubble sharply changed direction and went where it was pointing. Finally he flew over the right stone shelf, the bubble popped, and he landed safely.

"Here goes nothing," Tyscene sighed. She approached the upward-pointing button and stepped on it, becoming enveloped in a bubble of her own and floating off. Momentarily she passed over the red button, and with a crackle of energy, the two red arrows on the grid clicked into different directions.

Then the inevitable happened. Tyscene flew over a picture of a singular eye pointing to the right. Obediently, her bubble made a sharp right turn, narrowly missing a whirlpool, and traveled directly into a sparkling purple field. Tyscene jerked to a stop.

"Don't worry, Tyscene, I'll get you out of there," Saetwo called over, though it didn't seem to allay Tyscene's obvious fright.

Now that his path was clear, Weiswyo pressed the button on his shelf. The second Bubble Machine cranked and pumped exactly as the first had done, another bubble wand rose into view, and within moments he was floating upward along the grid. He passed over an orange button, flipping another arrow, and flew directly into a yellow field. Now he was frozen as well.

"My turn now, I guess," Echae said with a gulp. He looked about to skate up to the machine, then second-guessed himself and turned back to Saetwo.

"Sae. . . if anything happens to me. . . or you. . . I want you to know, I. . . well, I. . . ."

Saetwo blushed brightly. "I know," she said. "Me too."

Echae gave her a longing look, but decided it wasn't the best time. Reluctantly, he turned away, approached the button, and stepped on it. In his bubble, he floated off in the new direction the orange arrow was now pointing. Saetwo watched him intently, praying he would be safe.

Echae eventually made a hard right turn, and as he did, flew over the yellow button. The yellow arrow now changed direction, but something else happened that was completely unexpected. Weiswyo, who had still been frozen, suddenly began moving again.

Saetwo's eyes widened. "Holy cow! Did you see that?!"

Within moments, Echae and Weiswyo had both reached the shelf on the other side. Their bubbles burst and they flopped onto the ground, completely safe.

"We made it!" Echae cheered, skating around in a tight circle.

Weiswyo didn't look as happy. "Yeah. . . how'd that happen, exactly?"

"I get it now," said Saetwo. "It must have been when Echae flew over the button. They don't just make the same-colored buttons change direction, they free people from the same-colored field too!"

Suddenly she felt a huge surge of hope. Then maybe someone would be able to free her as well.

"Well, that's great news," said Touli, "but Saetwo, it's your turn now."

"Huh? Oh. . . right."

Taking a deep breath, she flew over to the button. Being frozen once was terrifying enough, and the very last thing she wanted was for it to happen again. But she had no choice.

Reluctantly, she pressed down on the button, and as with the others, she found herself falling forward into the bubble wand and quickly became encased in a bubble that began floating out.

Saetwo marveled at the shimmering, transparent bubble that now surrounded her. She had seen plenty of bubbles in her life, but had never suspected that one day she'd get an inside view. She looked back nervously at her friends, who grew more and more distant as she went. It was a strange sensation to be floating without even needing to move her propeller. If it weren't for the bottomless abyss directly underneath her, it would almost be peaceful. She had to will herself not to look down.

Finally, after several turns, she approached the propeller picture, which pointed her directly at Tyscene. Her heart began to pound as she turned and floated toward the other Zoombini. Far too late, she wondered if this was a mistake, and if they would simply collide, both their bubbles popping. . . .

But she gently nudged Tyscene out of the field. Tyscene looked silently back at her, seeming grateful and remorseful at the same time, as she floated away.

Then came the familiar jerk, and Saetwo froze. She could feel her bubble trembling as it struggled to get free, but it was useless. She sighed shakily, trying to contain the fear that she would be left here forever.

From the ledge on the far side, Echae watched her. He hated so much that she had to be trapped there all by herself. If only he could have done something. . . .

"Echae? Now what?" asked Tyscene as she landed next to him, her bubble popping.

"Oh, right. Now everybody else can go. The way's all clear."

And so Saetwo was forced to watch as, one by one, the other Zoombinis were enveloped in bubbles and floated gently and safely through the grid. Sure enough, they evaded all the whirlpools and fields, and each of them landed successfully on the other side. They all looked incredibly relieved – their perilous adventure was finally over. But what about her?

"Echae?" she called fearfully after only half of them were left.

"Don't worry, Sae. I'll think of something," he called back. "Nobody else go across yet. One of you might need to help her."

He scoured all the pictures he could see, looking for some way, any way, she could make it across. . . .

"Hey! There's a purple button!" he noticed. "All we need to do is get somebody to fly over that, Sae, and you'll be free!"

"Great. Uh. . . who's gonna do that?"

"Well, there's a picture of a feature that points right at it. I can't tell what it is from over here, but it looks like. . . ."

"It's sunglasses," Tyscene said darkly.

"Huh? Oh, I guess it is," Echae agreed as he got a better look. "Oh, but Conneda's already over here. That only leaves. . . ."

His stomach plunged as he realized that somebody was missing.

"Oh no. . . where's Xekrai?"

"What? You mean he got away?" Saetwo cried, becoming even more panicked. "Where did he go?!"

"You really gotta ask?" came a sneering voice from directly behind Echae. Echae and the others spun around, saw who had spoken, and screamed.

An army of Fleens, with Narnoo in front, had just appeared behind them, all wearing wicked grins. The Zoombinis scrambled backward but couldn't go any farther than the edge of the shelf.

"Echae!!" Saetwo cried from where she was still hovering frozen. Suddenly she heard another chorus of screams from the other side of the abyss. Whipping around, she saw another group of Fleens advancing on the terrified Zoombinis who hadn't crossed yet. Leading them was Romelau.

"I gotta admit, I'm impressed you made it this far," the leader of the Fleens remarked. "Pretty unfortunate for you, though. You all walked right into our little trap. And it all ends here."

"We can take you guys in a fight!" Iake shouted desperately at him. "We're not gonna listen to anything you say!!"

"You might wanna retract that statement," Romelau said simply, pulling out of the way to reveal two more Fleens standing behind him. Saetwo's blood ran cold when she saw that they were holding a Zoombini, badly injured and barely conscious, between them. It was Uloobu.


	25. Battle of the Abyss

"Uloobu!!" Saetwo screamed as the two Fleens dangled him over the edge of the shelf. He seemed to snap out of his daze then and cried out in fright as he struggled to free himself. The Zoombinis on the shelf next to him seemed too terrified to even approach him.

Then Saetwo noticed something that made her stomach churn. She never forgot the horror and rage that flooded through her at that moment.

Both of Uloobu's propeller blades had been snapped off. He couldn't fly.

"_You let him go _now_!!_" Echae roared from the opposite end of the cavern, all his authority coming to the forefront. But the Fleens only laughed.

"We might," said Romelau. "But you all have to do something for us first."

"Echae, don't listen to them!" Saetwo cried desperately. All at once she flew into a panic and tried to pull herself free of the field's pull, even if it meant popping her bubble. But it was no use; she was still too exhausted from her last attempt.

"If you want him back so bad," Romelau went on, "all you have to do is surrender to us. Permanently."

"_What?!_" exclaimed several outraged Zoombinis.

"You heard me!" Romelau shouted at them. "This chase has gone on long enough! This violence between the species has gone on long enough! It can all end here, with all of you, if you want it to."

"Echae, no! Forget about me, please!" Uloobu begged, his eye flooded with tears. His captors didn't even bother trying to silence him.

"You all don't deserve this," Romelau continued, his voice rising to address every Zoombini present. "Like you all said, your parents are the ones who we really wanted back at. And they've paid the price already. You don't have to suffer like they did. If you surrender, we give you your little friend back – " He smacked Uloobu in the head, and the Zoombini whimpered in pain. " – and you all live. You'll belong to us forever, and will do what we tell you to for the rest of your lives. But you'll live."

Saetwo couldn't believe what she was hearing. How could Romelau even suggest that? And how could they _accept _it? They had escaped from slavery and risked their lives countless times over just to find somewhere to live in peace – only to become slaves all over again?

"Echae, be careful," Conneda said in a low voice. "We don't know if he's telling the truth."

"You have my word. One leader to another," Romelau said solemnly.

"Whatever _that's _worth," Echae spat at him.

Romelau glared at him from across the cavern. "You'd better watch your tongue. This is a limited-time offer."

As if to prove his point, the two Fleens holding Uloobu suddenly let go of him, letting him drop for an instant before catching him again. He screamed.

Saetwo could hardly stand to watch anymore. All she could do was watch this terrible scene unfold around her. Why did she have to be frozen here, completely useless?

"And anyway," said Romelau, "I believe all of you deserve a chance. You've proven yourselves. You got through all of our little traps for you, after all."

All the Zoombinis cried out in anger.

"You mean all that stuff we went through – the Mirror Machine – _this _thing – you set all this up?!" Echae fumed.

"Don't be stupid. All this stuff was there to begin with. All we did was change some things around. Make them more. . . exciting."

Echae glanced over at Saetwo, still floating in place over the abyss.

"If we surrender," he said slowly, "you'll let Uloobu go?"

"I assure you we will."

"Echae, _no! _You can't agree to this!!" Touli pleaded.

"There's gotta be another way to save him!" Iake insisted. "This whole thing will've been for nothing!"

But Echae had made his decision. Saetwo knew him better than anyone else, and she knew that his one weakness was his undying loyalty to his friends.

"Fine. We surrender," he said, glowering at the Fleens. "Now let him go."

Romelau nodded, a smug look of victory spreading across his face, and turned to Uloobu's captors.

"You heard him."

They let him go. And he fell.

"_ULOOBU!!_"

"_NO!!_"

All the Zoombinis screamed in panic as they shoved the offending Fleens aside and ran to the edges of the shelves, but they were all too late. Saetwo didn't even hear herself screaming Uloobu's name along with everyone else. All she was aware of was the world collapsing around her as Uloobu, shrieking, plummeted down and down and down –

A brilliant flash of purple streaked down after him. The Zoombinis stood back in shock as someone suddenly grabbed Uloobu in midair, then made an arc back up to the surface without even slowing down.

"Bruno!" Saetwo gasped.

"You!" Romelau growled at him. "I thought we already set you straight, you spineless little traitor!"

The marsh fairy parked himself directly in front of Romelau, Uloobu trembling so hard in his grasp he was almost convulsing.

"Don't ever call me spineless," he said with more conviction in his voice than Saetwo had ever heard. "The only spineless thing I ever did was helping the likes of you. Well, I'm never making that mistake again. You're going to leave these guys _alone_."

Echae was the first Zoombini able to react.

"_Yeah!! _Go Bruno!!" he cheered, and within moments all the other Zoombinis were cheering right along with him.

"_Shut up, all of you!!_" Romelau roared, then turned his attention back to Bruno. "You really think you can take me alone?!"

"No. I don't." He let go of Uloobu with one hand to gesture at all the Zoombinis gathered around. "But I think all these guys _and _me will be more than a match for you."

Saetwo grinned.

"What, don't _we _get to do anything?" came another familiar voice, and suddenly Ulla and Captain Cajun emerged from out of the shadows, looking equally smug. Ulla was brandishing her broom like a deadly weapon, and Captain Cajun was standing in a similar pose with his oar. After a stunned moment, all the Zoombinis began laughing in joy at the sight of their old friends.

"You guys have been causing trouble around here long enough," Ulla declared fearlessly. "We used to just let it slide, but when you start picking on innocent kids, we draw the line."

"Might I suggest y'all surrender and save yo'selves a heap of trouble?" said the Captain. "We're not backing down from you this time."

Echae nodded. "You were right, Romelau. This chase _is _going to end. Right here, and right now."

All the Zoombinis recognized the signal. Before Echae had even finished shouting "CHARGE!!", each and every one of them hurled themselves at the Fleens.

Romelau shouted in fury as he was suddenly buried underneath a mountain of Zoombinis. Narnoo and the others found themselves forced backwards as Echae and the others charged at them at full speed, leaping on top of them and pummeling them furiously.

Saetwo's momentary relief turned back into fright. On either side of her, the massive battle between the Zoombinis and the Fleens was erupting. Though the Zoombinis had the element of surprise, the Fleens were rapidly gaining ground, clearly not in the mood to lose again. Many Zoombinis were being smacked around mercilessly and thrown dangerously close to the abyss, having to scramble with all their might to avoid falling in.

Romelau was trying to take to the sky and escape the chaos, but Ulla and Captain Cajun had both grabbed him and were pulling down, battering him with their weapons as hard as they could. The other Zoombinis quickly joined in, giving Romelau what was surely the most thorough beating he had ever experienced. Bruno was circling high above everyone else, still clinging onto the flightless Uloobu and fighting the only way he could: pointing his wand at one Fleen, then another. Both of them would become so disoriented at their sudden change in location that they would be totally at the mercy of the Zoombinis.

And yet through it all, she was still frozen.

In her exposed position, Romelau noticed her almost instantly.

As he did, he looked almost incredulous to find her so totally helpless, but within moments he had grown a determined look on his face. He blasted his rockets at full power, flames roaring out of them and knocking his assailants back. Completely free, he careened toward Saetwo.

"No!!" she cried, thrashing and struggling harder than ever, though her shout was drowned out by Romelau's laughter.

"So _this _is how it ends for you!" he shouted mockingly as he flew at her. Saetwo screamed and squeezed her eyes shut, unable to watch him approach –

And suddenly, she wasn't frozen anymore.

Opening her eyes, she saw her bubble had burst and that she was no longer floating over the field; she was hovering several feet away. It was Romelau that was now frozen, looking completely bewildered and, as he realized his situation, furious.

"What did you _do?!_" he bellowed at her as he writhed around. Realizing what must have happened, Saetwo looked over her shoulder and saw Bruno floating behind her. He grinned and waved at her.

She smiled back. "Thank you!" she called before zooming off to join the fight.

--

Echae was leading the fight on his half of the cavern, and things were not going well. The Zoombinis were rapidly losing their energy and couldn't hold the Fleens back for much longer. The Fleens, on the other hand, looked more energized than ever before, fueled by their desire to exact this final revenge on the Zoombinis.

"Echae! What should we do?!" Conneda shouted over at him as he swung his skates wildly at any Fleen that dared to venture close.

"I don't think we're gonna win this time!" Touli alerted, ducking and springing to avoid the swipes of one particularly large Fleen.

"We can't give up, you guys!" Echae shouted back, though even he could see it was rapidly turning into a hopeless fight.

_We need more help over here! _he thought desperately. _But who could possibly – _

The thought was knocked clear out of him, along with his breath, as someone delivered a violent kick straight to his head.

As he landed on his face and quickly flipped over, Echae was not at all surprised to see who it was.

"Don't you _ever _give up?!" he snarled at Xekrai.

"Not until you do!" Xekrai shouted back, throwing himself at Echae.

Echae easily rolled out of the way as Xekrai slammed into the ground where he had been. Then he leapt to his feet and slammed into Xekrai, sending him skittering close to the edge. But Xekrai clearly wouldn't go down that easily, swinging his leg at Echae and knocking his feet out from underneath him.

"Xekrai, why are you doing this?!" Echae demanded as he desperately scrambled backward to avoid the blows Xekrai was throwing at him. "Why are you going against your friends like this?!"

"You were _never _my friends!!" was Xekrai's reply as he rammed Echae into a wall. Echae grimaced as his head exploded in pain, sliding to the ground.

"You never wanted me as leader! You made that pretty clear!" Xekrai went on, not bothering to attack Echae anymore now that his opponent was helpless. "I don't owe you anything! Why should I be looking out for anyone but myself?"

Echae shook head, both in an attempt to clear it and in contempt. "Don't you have any idea how much you sound like your dad right now?"

"Yeah? So what?"

"Xekrai, why do you _want _to be like him? Don't you even care what he did to us?! We didn't stand up for him because he _betrayed _us! So you turn around and do the same thing?!"

"SHUT UP!!" Xekrai screamed, throwing himself at Echae – which was clearly a mistake, as Echae immediately ducked out of the way and Xekrai rammed his head into solid stone.

Echae quickly realized that, even with this momentary advantage, he wasn't as strong as Xekrai. He had been fighting long before Xekrai had shown up and was already exhausted.

Luckily, he had just found Xekrai's weakness.

"Xekrai, you don't _have _to be like your dad!" he insisted, ducking and weaving as the other Zoombini advanced on him. "The Fleens made it seem like you do, but you don't! You don't have to make the same mistake he did!"

"Stop talking about him!!" Xekrai cried, sounding less angry and more desperate. He swung a kick at Echae, who quickly dodged it and struck him with one instead.

"Why? You don't want to hear about him?" Echae taunted. "If you're so supportive of him, then why do you sound so ashamed?"

"STOP IT!!" he leapt at Echae yet again, but landed flat on his face as Echae dived out of the way.

"I know deep down you're just as angry at him as we are," Echae said firmly, realizing he was finally getting somewhere. "But you thought your only option was to follow in his footsteps. You thought we were angry at you because of him. But we weren't. We were never angry at you. We just wanted you to stop being so full of yourself. You could've been a great leader! Why'd you throw it all away?"

Xekrai surprised him with one more blow to the face, but it was halfhearted and weak. Suddenly, he didn't appear in any condition to fight anymore. The anger was quickly leaving his face, replaced by misery and sadness.

"What choice did I have?" he asked helplessly.

"You _always _have a choice," Echae told him. "Even now it's not too late, you know. You can still be a great leader. But not with them," he said, gesturing at the Fleens behind them who were mercilessly beating down the other Zoombinis. "You know they're not your real friends. You know they don't value you. They were only using you."

Suddenly, Echae was looking morose as well. "_Please _don't let them do that. Don't be like your dad. You're better than that. I know you are."

Xekrai just stared up at him, looking lost and confused.

Suddenly there was a roar of pain from behind them as Dreesi came collapsing to the ground, several Zoombinis piling on top of her. She barely managed to shake them all off and crawled over to where Xekrai was.

"Hey you, kid!" she snapped at him. "This ain't exactly easy! Are you gonna help us or what?"

Xekrai didn't respond. He looked at her, then looked back at Echae, unsure of what to say.

"Hey! Kid! Are you stupid or something? Get over here!!"

_Don't, _Echae mentally pleaded with him.

Xekrai looked uneasy for one final moment, and then, at long last, seemed to make up his mind.

"You know," he said to Dreesi, "I don't really feel like helping you guys anymore."

Dreesi looked stunned. "What?!"

Echae broke into a grin. "You heard him," he said. "Now you better get out of here before we _really _make you hurt."

Dreesi continued looking confused, but as she slowly realized what had happened, she turned furious.

"GAAAAAAAH!!" she roared as she charged at them. She never had a chance. Echae and Xekrai jumped at her simultaneously, knocking her to the ground, and then both of them raced off together.

--

"This isn't looking good," Bruno fretted as he surveyed the battle scene from high above. "I know your friends are determined, but they're not organized, and the Fleens are."

"What do you mean?" asked Uloobu.

"The Fleens obviously put a lot of planning into this fight. They're strategizing. If only we could do the same thing, we could win."

"Well, Echae's looking a little busy right now. . . ."

"That's not what I mean. He couldn't do it from there anyway," Bruno explained even as he casually swapped around the bewildered Fleens far below. "We need somebody who can see everything that's going on. Somebody with a bird's-eye view of the situation."

"But that would mean – ohhhhh. . . ."

Bruno gave him a smirk. "Think you're up to it?"

Uloobu's eye narrowed in determination. "You bet."

Bruno smiled and zoomed over to the very center of the cavern.

"HEY EVERYBODY!!" Uloobu shouted.

Every single Zoombini stopped what they were doing and turned to stare at him.

"LISTEN UP!! YOU GUYS ON THE RIGHT, QUIT RUNNING AROUND LIKE CRAZY! THEY'LL GET YOU THAT WAY! ONLY FOCUS ON ONE FLEEN AT A TIME, THERE'S MORE OF YOU THAN THEM! YOU GUYS ON THE LEFT, START FORMING A BARRICADE AND STOP ANY MORE FLEENS FROM SNEAKING UP ON YOU! YOU HAVE TO FORCE THEM INTO THE WALL!!"

The Zoombinis and Fleens were all completely stunned.

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! DO LIKE HE SAYS!!" shouted Bruno.

"COME ON, GUYS!! YOU CAN WIN THIS IF YOU ALL WORK TOGETHER!!"

From where he was standing, Echae smiled. "YOU HEARD HIM, GUYS! LET'S DO IT!!"

All the Zoombinis cheered and began ganging up on the Fleens exactly as Uloobu had said. Saetwo twirled around in delight and charged at a defenseless Fleen along with Touli.

"YEAH!!" Uloobu cheered. "LET'S GO, EVERYBODY!! GET UNDERNEATH THEM SO THEY CAN'T GET AT YOU!! YOU GUYS FORMING THE BARRICADE, ALL COME CHARGING AT ONCE!! STAY TOGETHER!! LET'S GO GO GO!!"

As though by a miracle, the battle suddenly turned overwhelmingly in favor of the Zoombinis. On one side the Fleens were completely cut off from each other and picked off one by one, and on the other side they were forced back by the Zoombinis' impenetrable defense. The Fleens began crying out in fear, and some of them even ran away, disappearing from the cavern.

Uloobu was shouting directions all the while. "SAETWO, LOOK BEHIND YOU!! YOU GUYS OVER THERE, SPREAD OUT MORE!! WATCH OUT FOR THAT FLEEN TRYING TO GET AROUND!! AND FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, _DON'T GET HIT IN THE HEAD!!_"

There was only one Zoombini who wasn't fighting now. Tyscene had fallen still long ago and was now gazing up at Uloobu, wide-eyed in disbelief, oblivious to everything else.

"Uloobu!" she finally called up. "HEY ULOOBU!"

Uloobu looked down and noticed her.

"I never realized how cute you are when you're actually ordering other people around!"

Uloobu stared at her for a moment, then blushed. "I never realized how pretty _you_ are when you're not picking on me!"

Bruno looked back and forth between them, completely lost.

"Do you wanna go get a milkshake sometime?" asked Tyscene.

"If we survive, I'd love to!"

"TYSCENE!! SOME OTHER TIME!!" Xekrai shouted as his sister as he battered back three Fleens at once.

"Right! Okay!" Tyscene dived back into the battle, fighting more vigorously than ever before.

Romelau couldn't believe what was happening. The battle was raging all around him, and slowly but surely the Zoombinis were emerging victorious. And here he was, stranded in the middle of the abyss, unable to move! Caught in his own trap! It was clear that his lackeys couldn't win this fight without him.

And he wasn't about to lose. Not this time.

Letting out a mighty roar that reverberated throughout the entire cavern, Romelau sent a scorching burst flame out of each of his jetpacks. He began to tremble more and more violently, struggling against the invisible pull against him.

It had taken Saetwo minutes. It took him mere seconds. With one tremendous burst of energy, he was free.

He no longer cared about the mayor's son. There was only one Zoombini he wanted now.

--

"_This _is for ruining my hotel!!" Ulla shouted as she repeatedly whacked a hapless Fleen over the head with her broom.

"Yeah! _This _is for ruinin' her hotel!" Captain Cajun snapped as he gave another Fleen similar treatment.

"We're really scaring 'em now!" Saetwo laughed at Touli as they and the others advanced on the remaining Fleens, who were looking ready to retreat. She was tiring from the fight, but wasn't about to let it show.

"You said it!" Touli laughed back. "I really think we're going to – "

She broke off as she caught sight of something behind them. Her victorious expression suddenly changed to one of utter terror.

"Saetwo. . . BEHIND YOU!!"

Saetwo didn't have time to turn around. She didn't have time to react at all before she suddenly felt a tremendous weight thrown against her. All the Zoombinis and Fleens saw her and dived out of the way as she came flying forward and crashed face first into the stone wall.

She cried in pain, staggering backward and struggling to stay airborne. She could feel the blood trickling down her forehead. But who had just done that?

"You're not getting away from me. Never again," came her answer.

She turned around and saw Romelau hovering in midair, slowly approaching her. Terrified, she spun around and flew out over the abyss in an attempt to escape him, all the while frantically looking around in search of anyone who could help her.

But there was no one. Now, at last, it was just the two of them.

"How stupid of me, going after the mayor's kid like that," he called as he followed after her. "Obviously, getting rid of you has been the solution all along."

Something in those words made Saetwo stop dead. Feeling a familiar rage begin to build up inside of her, she turned around to face him.

"I never did anything to you," she said, her voice perfectly still. "Why do you want me?!"

Romelau laughed cruelly. "_Why? _Because, my dear, _you're _the only reason your little friends got this far. Maybe you're not the leading type, but you give these guys hope. You believe in this whole peace and happiness business more than anybody else. And all the others just rally behind you, like the idiots they are."

Saetwo stared him down, refusing to flinch. This was it. This was her final stand. Even if she was doomed, she was going to go out like a hero, with the courage her friends all said she had.

"They aren't idiots," she said. "None of them are. They're the bravest, most loyal Zoombinis I've ever met. You ruined our lives, you destroyed our home, but in spite of everything they all came through it. They came through it all the better. And so did I."

Then she smiled sinisterly at him. "In fact," she said, "I really oughta thank you. This whole adventure we've been on has taught me so much about myself. Thanks to you, I've grown up."

Romelau smiled right back at her, without missing a beat. "Well, that's good," he said. "Then I don't have to feel guilty about murdering a kid."

And with no further warning, he charged at her.

Saetwo flew off to the right, missing him by a wide margin, but he immediately righted himself in midair and flew at her again. This time she wasn't fast enough, and the collision sent her reeling backward.

"Sae! No!!" she heard Echae shout.

"It's okay, Echae! I can do this!" she shouted back even as Romelau dived at her a third time. She ducked underneath him, determination building up inside of her. She had to win this fight. For her friends. For all the Zoombinis everywhere.

She rammed upwards into Romelau, catching him off guard and sending him flying up several feet. Then she soared around to face him and repeatedly swiped at him with her propeller. The leader of the Fleens bellowed in pain and fury as she scored gash after gash in his face.

"Enough of this!!" he shouted, spinning around and blasting her with the flames with his jetpacks. Saetwo screamed as she felt her skin being singed. With her defense momentarily down, Romelau took the opportunity to ram into her again.

Saetwo's heart froze as she heard a crack. But it hadn't come from inside her.

Her glasses were broken.

Everything was now a distorted blur as she looked around in fright, both her lenses sporting large spidery cracks.

"Do you give up now?" Romelau jeered.

"Never!!" she shouted, flying in the direction of his voice. By a stroke of luck, she hit him dead on and headbutted him painfully in the stomach.

Romelau growled in annoyance as he backtracked, then charged at her. Thankfully his image still stood out against the background, as she was able to perform an acrobatic flip over him as he streaked directly underneath her. Then she took to the air.

"You coward!" he snarled as he chased after her. Their battle led them up and up, higher and higher, until they had nearly reached the ceiling. All the while, they were slamming into one another in midair as they spiraled tightly around each other.

All around her, Saetwo could feel the other Zoombinis fighting with all their strength. Echae and Xekrai were battling side by side. Ulla and Captain Cajun were swinging their weapons around, sending the assaulting Fleens flying. Even Bruno came flying at Romelau, only to be sent careening backwards with a blast of the Fleen's fire.

They were all her friends. More than that. They were her family now, the only one she had left.

Then she heard something surprising.

"Come on, Saetwo! You can do it!!" came Touli's voice from down below.

"Teach that guy a lesson!" shouted Weiswyo.

"Don't ever stop!" yelled Tyscene.

Within a moment, all the other Zoombinis had taken up the call, urging her to keep fighting, to never give up.

Saetwo was astonished. Though she couldn't see them clearly, she looked down and saw all of the small blue blobs had broken off from the fight long enough to cheer her on, some of them jumping up and down in excitement.

Saetwo's heart swelled. They were behind her all the way.

Even among all the blue blurs, she thought she could make out one in particular who had an orange nose and messy hair, standing perfectly still, gazing up at her, believing in her with all his heart.

Newly energized, she threw herself at Romelau and their intense battle continued on, the cheering and encouraging of the other Zoombinis rising up to fill the entire chamber. She could tell Romelau was becoming overwhelmed. His blows were growing weaker and farther apart, and each one was accompanied by a desperate grunt.

He was rapidly losing his cool. The crowd was on her side, and it was affecting him. None of the Fleens had the nerve, or the desire, to encourage him.

And that was why the Zoombinis would always be better. Above all else, they knew how to love.

But the Fleens knew how to tear love apart. Saetwo glanced away from her fight for the slightest instant, which was time enough to see two other flying Fleens perched high up on a rocky ledge, straining against the weight of something large and gray, trying to push it off.

A boulder.

And below them was Echae.

A horrific rush of memories came flooding back, completely unbidden. The Bloats struggling to hold up their own boulder, about to use it for the very same purpose. The feeling of incomprehensible horror as it plummeted toward her. Someone pushing her out of the way. Her desperation, her fury, her heartbreak, as she recognized who it was. Seeing the light leave their eyes for the very last time. . . .

"_NO!!_"

The boulder began to fall, and she zoomed toward him at breakneck speed, faster than she had ever flown in her life. But Romelau had lost all reason. He wanted her dead, no matter the cost. He cared about nothing else. Not even his own safety.

Letting out an insane shriek, he flew after her. And so when she reached Echae, colliding into him and sending him flying to safety at the very last moment, Romelau was immediately upon her.

The boulder hit both of them.

Echae's scream pierced through every other noise as the boulder's impact caused the stone shelf beneath it to crack and give way. A huge section of it broke off and began to slide down into the abyss. The boulder rolled off of it and plummeted away, vanishing without a sound, and the broken forms of Saetwo and Romelau slid off of it and tumbled down, down, down, bouncing against the rocks and ledges as they fell. No one could tell if they were alive or dead, awake or unconscious, because if they were screaming then their sounds were completely drowned out by the terrified roars and cries of everyone present, Zoombini, Fleen, and otherwise.

Finally they vanished, swallowed up by the darkness.

Everything was still.

"SAETWO!!"

Echae threw himself to his knees, gazing into the abyss with disbelief in his eyes. "_No!! No!! No!! Sae!! Answer me!!_"

No one else dared make a sound. Echae kept screaming into the abyss, growing more and more desperate until he finally broke down sobbing.

"Sae. . . ." he pleaded weakly. "You can't leave. . . please. . . ."

It took the Fleens until now to realize that, if she was gone, then so was Romelau. And no one could possibly survive that. Suddenly they were without a leader, without a drive, and without any hope.

One by one, they silently crept away, vanishing through whichever doorway was nearest. Echae and the others would never see them again.

Carefully depositing Uloobu on the ground, Bruno flew down into the abyss, looking desperate to find her, but emerged empty-handed several minutes later.

"It's too big," he said hopelessly. "And it's too dark. I can't see anything. I – I couldn't find her no matter how hard I tried."

As they heard this, the Zoombinis slowly lowered their heads as tears sprang to their eyes, realizing the full extent of what had just happened. Even Ulla and Captain Cajun were barely able to maintain their composure.

Echae was still crying as hard as ever. He ignored the other Zoombinis approaching him and nuzzling him in consolation. He couldn't go on now. He had lost the most important thing in his life. Saetwo had been his very best friend. . . and maybe something even more than that. . . .

Finally it was Xekrai who spoke.

"We. . . still have to keep going," he said regretfully. "That's what we decided from the very start. No giving up, no matter what."

Without looking up, Echae nodded. The Fleens were gone, but that didn't change a thing. They still hadn't accomplished what they had set out to do.

"Come on, you guys," Bruno said to everyone on the opposite side of the cavern. No one felt like using the Bubble Machine anymore, so the marsh fairy flew them across one by one. Finally he grabbed Uloobu and flew over, landing where everyone else was now gathered. Freedom was just a few yards away now, but still no one moved.

Ulla seemed to know what to say. "We'll never forget her."

"She surely was a brave one," Captain Cajun agreed.

All the Zoombinis nodded, some muttering in agreement, most of them still fighting back tears. There was nothing else to do.

"Let's go," said Xekrai, and everyone followed him up the tunnel, through the doorway, and into the cold night air. After the Zoombinis came Ulla and the Captain, followed by Bruno, still holding onto Uloobu.

Echae was the very last. He waited until everyone had left and he was alone in the cavern, then bowed his head, unable to look anywhere but the ground.

"Goodbye, Sae," he whispered, and then skated after the others, leaving a part of himself behind forever.

--

**A/N: **The end. Nah, I'm kidding. But the ending is now only two chapters away. Only one update left! I'm going to upload the last two together (in just a few days), so when they're up make sure you don't accidentally skip over Chapter 26. It's kind of important.


	26. Fly

Saetwo wasn't sure where she was. She seemed to be floating, but then her propeller wasn't moving. Looking around, all she could see were blurry images that faded in and out, then disappeared, leaving her to wonder if they had ever been there.

She tried to remember what had just happened to her, but her head was throbbing too hard for her to think straight.

Finally, all the images around her vanished, and everything was silent. Saetwo found herself surrounded by nothingless. Confused, she looked around for any sign of life, but there was only a featureless, pale gray expanse.

"Hello?" she called out timidly. "Anybody here?"

She hadn't been expecting an answer, but she got one anyway.

"Yes. I'm here."

Saetwo thought her heart would burst clear out of her chest. She knew that voice. It had been a long time since she had heard it, but she could never forget it.

She turned around to face the Zoombini who was standing there, waiting for her.

". . .Mom?"

"Here I am, sweetheart."

Saetwo had no idea what to do. She was so overcome with emotion, with joy, with sadness, that all she could do was hover there and tremble.

"I've missed you so much, Saetwo."

Saetwo nodded dumbly. "I missed you too. . . ." she choked out, feeling the tears well up. "But wait. . . if you're here, and I'm here. . . does that mean I'm. . . ."

"No, honey, you're not. I came here to tell you it's not your time yet."

"So you mean. . . I have to go back?"

"Don't you want to go back? Don't you want to be with your friends again?"

Of course she did. But at that moment, they didn't matter to her at all.

"No," she said helplessly. She was crying freely by now. "I just want to stay with you, Mom! Why do you have to leave me again?"

"Oh, Saetwo," Flouquo sighed, walking up to her. Saetwo pressed against her, wanting to stay there forever. "I never left you, and I never will. How could I ever do that?"

"But I'll never see you again. What'll I do without you?"

"Saetwo, you've been getting along fine. I've been watching you, and I'm so very proud of everything you've done. I wish you could stay too, but your friends need you more than I do."

Saetwo looked up at her. "They do?"

"Of course. I'm sure you know this by now, but no Zoombini is an island. If your friends want to get by, they're going to need your courage as much as they need Echae's wisdom, Xekrai's leadership, and Uloobu's kindness."

Saetwo didn't answer for a moment. She just hovered where she was and cried.

"But _I _need _you_," she finally said.

She looked up and saw that she was alone again.

"Mom?"

"And that's why you'll always have me," came the voice. "Saetwo, there's something you have to do now. In these past few weeks you've already done more than I could ever have asked of you. But there's one more thing. You just have to fly."

Saetwo opened her eyes. She was lying on her back, staring up at the edge of the abyss, nearly a hundred feet above her head. She rolled over and realized she wasn't at the bottom at all; the drop continued on far below her, and she still couldn't see where it ended. She had been lucky enough to land on a slab of rock coming out of the wall before she fell too far.

Groaning, she drew herself up into a hovering position. She was aching all over, and her broken glasses were still hanging uselessly over her face. She didn't think she had the strength left to fly all the way up there.

_But if I ever want to see them again, I have to_.

Taking a deep breath, she slowly began rising up the wall, never taking her eyes off the top where the ground finally leveled off. Immediately after she started moving a jolt of pain laced through her. Grimacing, she curled up, already wanting to stop, but knowing she had to go on.

Up and up she went, ever so slowly, fighting back the pain that throbbed through her every second. She forced herself not to look down at the place where someone might be lying. She didn't know if Romelau was dead or alive, and she didn't want to find out.

The pain got worse and worse as she went higher and higher, but she refused to stop. She thought of everything she had gone through to get where she was now. All the puzzles she had solved, all the challenges she had faced, all the friends she had made. She couldn't throw all that away.

She was halfway there.

She thought of all the Zoombinis still waiting back on Zoombini Isle, waiting to be rescued. She thought of the Fleens and the Bloats and everyone else who had meant them harm, knowing she would never have to worry about them again.

She was almost there. . . she could begin to see a faint gray light pouring in from outside. . . .

The pain was almost overwhelming, but she fought it back. She thought of the Cave Guards and the Pizza Trolls, whose true natures would always be unclear. She though of Ulla and Captain Cajun and Bruno, whose true natures would never be in doubt again. But most of all, she thought of her friends, the ones who had always been there for here, the ones waiting for her just ahead, and how much she wanted to see all of them again. . . .

She made it to the top.

Gasping for breath, she collapsed onto the shelf just a few feet away from the outside. As the pain began to subside, she looked up and saw that it was dawn now. The sky had turned from black to light gray. She even thought she could see the clouds.

_I can't wait to get out of here_.

As soon as she felt able, she got off the ground and flew out of the mountains, vanishing through the doorway and into the dawn light.

--

Echae reluctantly looked up when he heard everyone else gasp. Wondering what could be so important that they had to stop, he frowned to himself before looking at what the rest of the group was staring at in disbelief.

Echae saw it too, and suddenly forgot everything that had happened last night. There was no room in his mind for anything except what he was now seeing.

Less than half a mile away, and far below them, was an enormous valley. The grass was green and waving gently, and there were no other creatures to be seen. Echae couldn't even see how far it went, but far off in the distance, standing protectively over it, was a series of towering grassy hills. The bright orange morning sun illuminated the entire sight, turning it to the most beautiful array of colors he had ever seen.

"_We made it!! We made it!!_" Conneda cheered, leaping up and down.

"We really did it!" exclaimed Tyscene, looking ready to burst out crying in joy.

Before Echae knew what was happening, all the Zoombinis were cheering and racing around, hugging and swinging each other around. Many of them had followed Tyscene's lead and were sobbing out of pure emotion. Bruno was laughing happily as he tossed Uloobu up and down. Ulla and Captain Cajun simply stood back and smiled.

"This is it," Xekrai said fondly to himself. "This is where we're going to live."

Even Echae, in spite of himself, found himself welling up in joy. Within moments he was cheering along with everyone else and finding himself enveloped in countless hugs.

Uloobu was never certain what made him look behind himself, but he was eternally grateful that he did. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone very familiar coming over the small hill they had just descended, and he fell silent. Bruno saw what he was looking at and did likewise. One by one, everyone else noticed them, turned to see what they saw, and stopped cheering, only able to stare in awe.

Saetwo was hovering on top of the hill, looking down at all of them. Her ponytail was a mess, her glasses were shattered, and she was covered in bruises. Echae didn't think he had ever seen anything more beautiful.

Not quite sure of what to do, Saetwo looked at all of them, turning slowly so she could see each and every one of them. . . .

And smiled.

"What'd I miss?"


	27. Coming Home

**Three Months Later**

--

Geeldaru was exhausted. His group had been traveling nonstop for longer than he cared to remember, and lately they had been doing nothing but complain. Not that they didn't have a lot to gripe about. They had run out of food from their most recent rest stop days ago and were now having to subsist on whatever they could find along the way. The weather had not been particularly friendly, and it was nearly impossible to go to sleep at night.

"I'm starting to wonder whether this place even exists," grumbled a blue-nosed Zoombini on his left.

"No kidding! Nobody seems to know for sure," said a Zoombini with wheels. "All we have is rumors floating around. If you ask me, it sounds too good to be true."

Geeldaru sighed deeply to himself, deciding now was the best time to address his group.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said as he turned to face them, "I understand how you're feeling impatient right now, but trust me, continuing on is our only option left. There's nothing for us back there, we know that."

"And how do we know there's anything for us up _there?_" demanded a female Zoombini. "How do we know this entire voyage hasn't been a complete waste of time?"

Geeldaru squeezed his eyes shut in exasperation as the group's voices began to rise in complaint once again. It seemed like he couldn't do _anything _to keep them quiet nowadays. . . .

He turned back around and prepared to continue onward, with or without the others, when his eyes caught something he hadn't noticed before.

"Hey! Where are you going?" someone snapped as he bounced forward to get a closer look. What he saw was so unexpected he could hardly comprehend it.

"Everyone. . . get a look at this," he said softly, and the group obediently gathered around the sign he was examining, pointing them further down the road:

ZOOMBINIVILLE

POPULATION 169

--

The group had quickly begun to pick up speed the moment they saw the various houses and buildings appear over the horizon, so that when they finally entered the new town they were all racing along as fast as they could, panting in excitement.

"It's incredible!" cried a red-nosed Zoombini, whipping around in an attempt to take it all in. "Look at all these things! Who _built _all this?!"

Geeldaru wanted to say something, but his throat was caught. He was welling up in such emotion he hadn't felt in a long time. He had always believed in the Zoombinis' new home, even back on Zoombini Isle when he had heralded its future creation, but that had been so long ago he had since started to wonder if he would ever truly see it. But now, here it was, laid out before his eyes. All he could do was stare in wonder.

"Hey! Did you guys just get here?" came a voice. Everyone turned to see a young Zoombini in a baseball cap rolling up to meet them. Geeldaru was startled to recognize the late mayor's daughter, but he didn't at all recognize the Zoombini accompanying her. He was zooming excitedly along with what appeared to be a spotless, brand new propeller.

"Yep, you guys are new. I can tell from how lost you all look," Tyscene chuckled. "Well, welcome to Zoombiniville! Your journey has not been in vain!"

"Yes, we can see that," said Geeldaru, feeling astounded. "Excuse me, but what are you two doing here, exactly?"

"Well for now, we're the unofficial welcoming committee," Uloobu replied with a smile. "Somebody has to get you guys set up, after all! Anyway, I hope you're all ready to move in!"

"You have houses already?" asked someone.

"Yep! Just waiting for people to fill them," said Tyscene. "And don't worry about food either. Until we get the crop business up and running, we're trading. The guy we're in business with deals mostly in fish, though. Hope you don't mind."

As the two young Zoombinis led his group along, Geeldaru gazed in awe at the buildings that surrounded them. Aside from all of the houses, many of which were already occupied by happy-looking families, there was also a swimming pool, a schoolhouse, a library, an observatory, and countless other buildings whose purpose he wasn't even sure of. There was even an enormous hollowed-out log that, judging by the sounds coming from inside of it, seemed to be a bowling alley.

"If you don't mind my asking. . . how did you build all these things?"

"Oh, well, we didn't really. Not all of it anyway. What I mean is – we had a bunch of help," Uloobu finally concluded. "I mean, after you've built a _hotel_, the rest is easy. Know what I mean?"

"We're gonna have to invite her back soon. This place is getting crowded," Tyscene said with a wink. The truth was, Ulla, along with Captain Cajun and Bruno, already took every excuse they possibly had to pay the Zoombinis a visit in their new home. Once Bruno had even arrived with the astounding news that he had run into the Pizza Trolls, and although they couldn't be bothered to make the journey, they sent their greetings, along with the hopes that they would get more pizzas made for them soon enough.

At that very moment, the door to the bowling alley swung open and out walked two more Zoombinis who looked the same age as the group's tour guides.

"Oh, hey guys!" greeted Uloobu, looking delighted. "Look, we just got some new arrivals!"

"Really? That's awesome!" said Echae, looking similarly happy.

"Seems like we've been getting more and more," remarked Saetwo.

"Well, it has been much easier to get off the island lately," Geeldaru conceded. "The Bloats finally up and left. They'd had enough, I suppose. There wasn't much else they could do. Now it seems it's just a matter of time before everyone makes it here."

This was certainly news to the younger Zoombinis. "They're really gone now, huh? Well, it was bound to happen sometime," Echae said with a shrug. "I just hope we never have to see them again."

"I don't think we will. They left in a very big hurry. Apparently they got word of something bad that happened to their leader, or something." Geeldaru shook his head. "Isn't that something? I always thought the Bloats worked only for themselves. I suppose this is something to ponder."

All four children exchanged silent looks. They never had found out what exactly had happened to Romelau. There were still occasional reports of unprepared groups of travelers getting jumped by random Fleens, but it was nothing to be truly worried about anymore. Their once-formidable group was broken up, and their former leader hadn't shown himself since, or at least no one could confirm he had. Still, they were almost certain he wasn't dead, and that he was hidden somewhere brooding away, wondering what was left for him to do.

". . .Yeah, I suppose it is," said Saetwo. "Anyway, you guys better get going. Don't want to keep you from your jobs."

"See ya around, you two," said Tyscene as she and Uloobu led the group of adults away, leaving Echae and Saetwo alone.

"It's weird hearing about Zoombini Isle again," Echae remarked as he and Saetwo set off in the opposite direction.

"I know. I wonder if we'll ever get to go back someday," said Saetwo. After a moment she added, "I still miss it sometimes."

"Me too. But y'know, I'm actually glad we had to leave. Think of all the stuff we never would've experienced if we'd just stayed there."

"Yeah. . . ."

The two of them began reminiscing silently, but didn't get to do it for long before there came the sound of a door slamming violently open. The two of them spun around to see three more familiar faces coming out of the Town Hall.

"For the last time, you two, _quit calling me 'Boss'!!_" Xekrai shouted.

"But you really _are _our boss now!" Weiswyo objected.

"Yeah! You hired us and everything!" said Iake.

"And I'm ruing that decision more and more with each passing – oh hey, you two," said Xekrai, noticing Saetwo and Echae.

"How's life treating you, mister mayor?" asked Echae.

"Terrible. These guys can't even take a census without screwing up. And somehow they think building a swimming pool is going to make up for that?!"

"Hey, at least we don't brown-nose you anymore," Iake reminded him.

"Well of course not. You have a purple nose and _you _have a green nose."

"It's just a figure of speech, Xekrai," said Saetwo, shaking her head. "But you'll have to take another census pretty soon anyway. Another group just got here today."

"Oh, _perfect_," Xekrai groaned, looking ready to admit defeat. "Well, as long as my compatriots here haven't forgotten simple math, this shouldn't be _too _hard."

"They're smarter than you think, Xekrai. Don't forget that," said Echae, and Weiswyo and Iake beamed at him.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll believe that when I get proof. Come on, you two, I don't pay you to stand around and get complimented."

Then the three of them disappeared back inside.

"I still can't believe _you _didn't want to be mayor," said Saetwo. "You totally could've won."

Echae shrugged. "What can I say? Xekrai _is_ a good leader."

"Yeah? So are you!"

"But since when was being mayor any fun?" Echae scoffed. "Anyway, I think he deserves to prove that someone in his family can do it right. Don't you?"

Saetwo giggled.

"Besides, I already know what I want to do."

"Oh? Do tell."

"I'm studying to be a historian," Echae announced proudly. "Don't you remember all those Zoombini relics and hieroglyphics we found back in the mountains? I'm pretty sure that's undeniable proof that Zoombinis have lived here before. Wouldn't it be exciting to discover the remains of an ancient civilization underground or something?"

Saetwo rolled her eyes. "Good luck with that."

"Touli and Conneda already agreed to help out with all the research."

Saetwo tried to imagine Echae getting anything at all done with those two as his assisstants. "Whatever you say, Echae."

For a moment after that, they simply stood back as they sometimes did and watched their friends walking around, going to work, or just playing and enjoying life. Really, the two of them just enjoyed taking a break once in a while and admiring their town. The town they helped make.

"I guess Iadwi probably left with them, didn't he?" Saetwo said after a while.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I guess so. He's got nowhere else to go now."

"I wonder. . . do you think, after all that, he's really happy?"

"How could he be? He doesn't get to be with you."

Saetwo grinned. Echae was every bit as bad at flirting as she was, but she decided the effort was worth a little snuggle.

As they broke apart, Saetwo found herself drifting back into her memories as she so often did now. She thought about the amazing adventure they had been through together, and how much they'd grown as a result. All the places they'd seen, all the friends they'd made – those were an irreplaceable part of her now, one she wouldn't give up for anything in the world. Zoombini Isle seemed like just a distant memory now – one she didn't have to worry about anymore, for surely there were only happy times ahead.

Still. . . was happy really the best there was? Wouldn't it get boring after a while?

Would she ever have an adventure again?

The thought of that suddenly made her surprisingly depressed. When Echae turned to look at her again, he saw there were tears in her eyes.

"Sae!" he exclaimed in alarm. "What's the matter?"

"Oh, Echae," she sighed. "We just finished the most incredible adventure of our whole lives. We'll _never _get to experience anything like that again." She looked at him morosely. "So now what? I mean, what are we supposed to do with the rest of our lives, knowing all that's over and done with?"

"Well," Echae said thoughtfully, "_logic _says we should live happily ever after."

"Logic," Saetwo repeated dismissively. "Where's the fun in that?"

After letting those words sink in, Saetwo and Echae suddenly looked at each other with growing excitement in their eyes, having just gotten the exact same idea at the same time.

"Race you to the bubble machine?"

"You're on!"

And so, both laughing joyfully, they took off down the road that would lead them away from home. The other Zoombinis smiled and stood back to let them pass as they raced by together, as inseperable as they had always been and would always be. They kept going even after their home had disappeared behind them and they passed the sign pointing them toward Zoombiniville in the opposite direction. They never once looked back.

**THE END**

--

**A/N: **And that's it. Wow! Can you believe that after all this time on , this is only the second multi-chaptered fic I've finished?! (dies)

Anyway, a few last-minute things. Firstly, I am aware there are two sequels to this game, but I don't plan on writing about either of them. If you want to, be my guest.

Second, just to clear this up once and for all: It's pronounced "sayt-wo", not "say-too". :D She's not the second of anything.

Third. . . please review? Please? I really want to know what you thought of the ending, plus I want the story I worked so hard on to go out on a successful note.

Finally, and most importantly, I want to thank everyone who read and supported this story. Writing this has truly been my pride and joy, and I couldn't have done it without everyone's encouragement. I especially want to thank Hiho, who has been this story's biggest supporter from day one. I haven't heard from her lately, but I hope she's still around. :(

And I guess that's all I have to say. I hope you enjoyed this story, and I hope I've done my part to increase awareness of little blue people.

'Til next time.


End file.
